Bloody Rose
by sapphire blue-ruby red roses
Summary: Naru's back from England with Lin and Madoka. It's been 3 years since they left. Some new, interesting, and gruesome cases show up for SPR to investigate. Will Naru and Mai be able to pick up where they left off? Rated M for later cases, NaruxMai
1. Chapter 1:  A Departue

**Okay, so this is my first Ghost Hunt fic and I don't remember how many years apart Naru and Mai are so they are a year apart. I don't know how this will be so please read and review ! :D**

**I didn't remember her friend's names so I made her some and I do realize that the characters might be a little *cough*really*cough* OOC**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ghost Hunt ):**

Chapter 1: A Departure

Mai stared at the clock, tapping her foot impatiently. How long was this class going to drag on for anyway? As if mocking her, the seconds hand ticked by even slower then it had been before.

She tapped her pencil against her notebook agitatedly. There was somewhere she wanted, no scratch that, needed to be. She only had today left to be with him before he departed for his home.

Mai sighed, looking down at her notebook where she'd been absent-mindedly writing his name over and over again. Blushing vigorously she stared to rub his name out with her eraser.

"Miss Taniyama, if you have time to attack your notebook with an eraser then you have time to translate passage eight for us," her teacher's voice said, yanking her back from her thoughts.

"Um, yes sir," she said nervously shooting a glare at her giggling friends as she stood up.

And so time crawled slowly forward. Actually, it was more like dragging its self forward.

An hour later the bell wailed signaling the end of the half school day. Mai's friends her dramatic change in emotion from seconds-away-from-committing-suicide to overjoyed as she nearly fell out of her seat in her haste.

"Whoa there Mai, stop trying to give yourself a concussion. Where are you headed off to in such a hurry? Got a hot date or what?" her friend Keili asked a sly grin playing across her lips.

To her surprise, Mai nodded enthusiastically. "And she's not kidding either. Her boyfriend is H-O-T!" Michiru added after Mai's nod.

Mai only smiled before taking off her friends hot on her heals. "I want to see this amazingly hot lover boy of hers," Keili said.

Mai was surprised when she got to the front gate. She had thought she would have to sprint all the way to the office, but instead, he stood at the gate waiting for her.

Keili, Michiru and the others stopped in their tracks with the whole gaggle of gawking girls while she burst through them at full speed. "Naru!" Mai called, a huge smile plastered to her face.

He caught her in a hug, pressing his lips to hers'. When they finally broke apart Mai was grinning like a fool while the rest of her classmates' jaws dragged on the ground.

"You really weren't kidding," Keili whispered breathlessly to Michiru, her eyes bugging as the two walked away.

"Goodnight!" Mai called to the rest of SPR. She and Naru stepped into her apartment out of the freezing cold, waving.

"Remember that the plane leaves at ten in the morning. Don't be late," Madoka called, leaning out the van window and winking at Mai with a sly grin.

A thick red blush spread across Mai's cheeks as she shut the door quietly behind her. She listened until she heard the van drive off before turning toward Naru who had seated himself on one of her couches.

"Oh man, what a crazy day," she sighed with a small smile.

Naru nodded slightly in agreement. "Yes, Takigawa really went all out for our going away party."

Mai's smile faltered before completely falling. Pain gripped at her heart, tugging on it. Tears threatened to fall as she planted herself next to him, wrapping her arms around his waist. "I don't want you to leave."

"I know," neither do I," was all he said before softly kissing her.

Naru woke up late the next morning to the smell of brewing tea. Slowly, or at least slower then usual, he got up and pulled on his black slacks that had been left on the floor. He found Mai standing next to the counter in the kitchen in his black shirt.

"What time is it?" he mumbled, coming up behind her and pulling her against him.

Mai laughed as he kissed her neck as greeting. "It's eight. We have just enough time to shower and eat breakfast before we need to get going."

"Then I guess we better get on with the shower," he said, pulling her away from the counter.

Two hours later the SPR team stood in the airport saying their goodbyes. Mai and Naru stood off to one side of the group having already said their goodbyes. Mai had successfully said her goodbyes to Lin and Madoka and was now trying, but failing miserably, to bid Naru a farewell.

"Flight 256 will be departing in ten minutes. Passengers, please board," a female flight attendant said over the intercom.

"When will you be back?" Mai asked, tears beginning to form in her eyes.

He looked at her with sad eyes and a blank expression. "I don't know," he said truthfully.

She wrapped her thin arms around his waist in a tight hug while he did the same. The attendant announced that there was five minutes till departure.

Naru grabbed Mai's hand, placing two cold and metallic objects in it as her kissed her forehead. "It's your's now. Be careful," he said in her ear before walking back over to Madoka and Lin.

They boarded the plane Madoka waving at them as they disappeared around the bend. "What did he give you?" Monk asked, coming over to stand next to her.

With shaking hands, she unfolded her clenched had to reveal the key to the SPR office and a small locket. Inside, a small picture of all of them together stood out. On the other side, a picture of her and Naru was framed.

Finally, after holding back this whole time, she cried.

**So was it horribly horrible? Was it okay? Review please so that I can make the next chapter better =D**


	2. Chapter 2: A Reunion

**Sorry for the short chapter, I just needed to get it out of the way, next one won't be that long either, but chapter 4 will be the start of their first case back together :D**

**I kinda made Naru OOC and maybe Mai a little too**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ghost Hunt because if I did there would be a second season and Mai and Naru would be a couple already.**

Chapter 2: A Reunion

A young man dressed all in a black suit quietly slid a key into the lock of a familiar door. The bolt made an audible click as it slid out of the way.

He pushed the door open, flipping on the light switch. The lights flickered on illuminating the familiar space. Everything was the same as he remembered except for the painting on the wall and the sleeping girl on the couch.

She was curled up in a ball under a blanket. Her light brown, shoulder length brown hair fell into her face.

The young man smirked in amusement. She never changed. "Mai. Mai, wake up," he said, shaking her shoulder gently.

The young woman's eyes shot open and she flew up into a sitting position, banging foreheads with the young man. "Ow, danmit, that really hurt," Mai groaned, clutching her forehead.

Her eyes darted around the room searching for the object of collision. When her eyes found it they widened considerably. "Naru!" she cried, throwing her arms around the boys neck.

"Oh, hi Mai. Thanks for the warning," Naru groaned, trying to sit up with the girl still on top of him.

"It's so nice to see you! When did you get back from England? And where's Lin? You two are usually attached at the hip aren't you?" she rambled on, smiling brightly. She sat on the floor between Naru's knees who was still trying to recover from being tackled.

"I just got back two hours ago. Lin had to watch Jamie because Madoka had to get things up and running again," he said, finally breathing normally again.

Mai tilted her head to the side, watching Naru curiously as she got up and started making tea. "Who's Jamie?"

"Jamie is Lin and Madoka's son."

He chuckled as Mai's eyes widened in surprise. Had it really been so long that two of their teammates already had a kid? "Holy crap, no way!" Mai shouted. She set two tea cups on the table. "Fricken' everybody is getting knocked up lately, what's up with that?"

Naru shook his head in disapproval. "And what exactly do you mean by that?" he asked, taking a sip of tea.

"Well, Ayako is due in a week with Monk as the father. Masako is due in three months and John is the father. He quit the priest hood," Mai said, ticking them off on her fingers.

Naru started choking on his tea. "What?" he asked.

"Oh yeah, John quit the priest hood for Masako. He got special permission to continue exorcisms though," she answered with a smile, "He sometimes helped me with the cases I took."

"Where any of them interesting?" he asked. His face was blank, but a spark of curiosity began crackling in his eyes.

Mai rolled her eyes. "A few easy persuasions, two poltergeists, a few hoaxes of guys just looking for a one night stand," she said, looking like she was annoyed.

Before Naru could come up with another question Mai's cell began vibrating violently on the table. Mai scooped it up and pressed the call button. "Hey Monk, you do realize it's like midnight right?" Mai said as greeting.

"Mai, help me! I don't know what to do!" Monk yelled into the phone. In the background there was the thud of something hitting the floor.

Naru looked up. He could hear Monk from all the way over here. "Whoa whoa whoa, slow down. What's going on?"

"Ayako's water broke and now I don't know what to do! Help me!"

Naru grabbed the phone from Mai's grip, pressing the phone it his ear. "Monk, calm down," he said coolly into the phone, "Get her to the hospital as quick as you can. Make sure she has a lot of towels to soak up the fluid from her water breaking. We'll be there soon." He motioned for Mai to follow him out of the SPR office.

"Don't worry about calling everyone else. I'll do that," Mai said as she grabbed the phone back and ended the call.

They ran and caught the first train making calls the whole way there. Not soon after, they were at the hospital to greet their frantic friends.

Ayako screamed and cursed again from behind the closed doors. Monk could be heard trying to sooth her with calm words even though he was anything but. The rest of SPR stood in the hall, clustered in a group.

Six hours later, as everyone slumped against the wall, Ayako's screams finally ceased while the cries of a baby replaced them.

Monk stumbled out, collapsing in the only unoccupied chair. "Hey, how's it feel to be a new daddy?" Yasu asked with a grin.

Monk glared over at him while rubbing his white hands.

**So how was it? Review for the babies please or they will never forgive you**


	3. Chapter 3: A Celebration

**So this one is a bit longer then the others, but not much longer, heh heh, please don't kill me**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ghost Hunt *sobs***

Chapter 3: A Celebration

Monk ran up to Mai, hugging her tightly. "Celebration time!" he shouted happily. He had since recovered from the traumatizing birth. He was back to himself yet a little more tired then usual.

It had been a month since the birth and everything had gone back to normal. When the nurse had brought his baby boy out to see and hold him Monk nearly passed out.

"Remember, this is a huge party to celebrate Mizuki's birth, Naru's twenty-first birthday, the return of Naru, Madoka and Lin, and since we never got to celebrate Masako's pregnancy it's also a type of baby shower for the SPR team," Yasu said with a huge grin on his face.

"Right, so let's get to it! No ones leaving this party until someone passes out or three in the morning rolls around!" Monk shouted, leading everyone into a private room and pouring everyone sake.

"No, absolutely not. Jamie has to go to bed at eleven at the latest. He might fall asleep before them," Madoka explained, downing her cup of sake.

"Then you can go home when he falls asleep," Yasu compromised, also chugging his sake before refilling his glass.

Masako and Ayako sat glaring at everyone. The had glasses in front of them, but hadn't touched them. "Why no drinky?" Yasu asked.

"Um, hello, I'm pregnant," Masako said irritated.

"And I have to take care of a child and take that soon to be drunken fool home," Ayako grumbled, clicking her nails repeatedly on the table.

"Don't be such a stick in the mud," Mai said with a laugh, "The sober people will help everyone get home."

"Yeah, Masako, Lin and Jamie," Madoka said, already through her third cup of sake.

Everyone laughed except for of course Lin and Naru, the ice cubes of the group, though Lin's lips did twitch slightly in a smile. Jamie sat quietly between his parents with his sippy-cup between his legs. He watched the adults as they talked and drank with curious eyes.

By the time their food arrived they were already well on their way through their second bottle of sake. Everyone who was drinking was on their fifth cup at least. Madoka and Yasu had drunk about ten glasses a piece.

Monk and Yasu laughed heartily, singing the most random of songs at the top of their lungs. At one point they even began singing "Baba Black Sheep".

Mai soon joined them followed by Madoka. Delicate blushes heated both of their faces along with John's who sat on the other side of the table. Masako and Ayako laughed quietly on the other side. Watching their four colleagues was like watching a comedy.

The clock on the wall chimed three in the morning. Hardly anyone noticed until Naru stood up. "I think it's time everyone starts heading home," he said in his cold voice.

"Aw, but why?" Mai asked, hiccupping. None-the-less, she tried to stand up, but nearly collapsed back down. Naru caught her before she could kiss the floor.

"That's why," he said, answering her question.

"Oooo, Naru, trying to get a handful of my little sister?" Yasu asked in a teasing tone, laughing.

Ayako hit him upside the head. "Stop being so vulgar you dork. This is why you shouldn't drink."

"I'm sleeping over at your house tonight so I can finally share a bed with my husband," Yasu said, throwing his arm around Monk's neck.

"I'll be taking her home now," Naru announced heading for the door with just steady steps even with how much he had also drank, "See you in the office tomorrow."

Lin acknowledged his departure with a nod of his head and a wave of his hand before turning back to stop Jamie from drinking out of Madoka's cup.

…

"Mai, stop being so difficult," Naru commanded, wrestling with her to get her shoes off.

"But I don't want to go to bed Naru," she whined. Giggling, she pulled her foot out of his grasp for the umpteenth time.

Naru sighed in frustration. This girl was impossible. How had he survived her this long without something happening? "Then go take a shower," he said, finally complying. Under his breath he muttered, "Maybe it will sober you up."

"Okay," she sang, bouncing over to the bathroom.

Not even thirty minutes after her heard the shower running the door swung open. A torrent of steam rushed through the opening. Mai came out in a towel and still tipsy. She giggled a little as she made her way over to him.

She sat on the arm of the chair he was in and leaned into him with and arm around his neck. "What're you doing?" she asked curiously.

"Looking over a case my parents sent me," he said, trying to ignore Mai's chest in his face, "Please get dressed and go to bed."

"I don't want to. This is more comfortable," Mai said with another giggle.

Naru snapped the case file shut and stood up. He stuck his arms under Mai and picked her up. She wrapped her arms around his neck. When they got into her room he dropped her on her bed, but she didn't let go of his neck.

"Mai, let go," Naru said calmly though his control was slipping a bit due to the alcohol coursing through his system and Mai herself.

"Kiss me goodnight," she said, not even phrasing it as a question. It was more of a demand than anything.

"No Mai, now let go," Naru said, grabbing her hands.

She frowned at her demand being denied. Instead, she acted herself. She pulled his face down to hers and pressed her lips together. It wasn't soon after that Naru thawed out of his shock and began kissing her back.

Both of their hormones fired up from their neglected teenage years. They were coming back full force from being neglected for such a long time.

Naru and Mai broke apart for only a second to gather air before they were kissing again. He pushed her back down onto her bed without any resistance. Soon, their clothes and Mai's towel could be found thrown at the other side of the room.

…

**This was…well interesting to write to say the least. Sorry if Mai and Naru's little scene wasn't very interesting, I'm only 14-years-old so I'm completely and utterly inexperienced in that field, plus it makes me feel like a pervert when I write things more descriptive then that**

**And if its not that then its completely full out description, no middle man for me, haha**


	4. Chapter 4: A Case

**The ext chapter should be longer so sorry for the shortness of this one, I might not be able to update for the next 5 days or so, so I'm very sorry, hope you guys enjoy this chapter :D**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ghost Hunt**

Chapter 4: A Case

Mai's POV:

I groaned, leaning my head down on my desk. Thank god that this office was so quiet and its other two occupants were hulled up in their man caves. My head was pounding and I was so sore that I thought if anyone talked to me I would punch a hole in the wall.

Not to mention my embarrassment at finding Naru in my bed this morning and what had transpired last night. He didn't show it, but I was pretty sure he was just as embarrassed.

"Mai, tea," came a tired voice from the depths of his office. His voice was completely void of the commanding tone it usually carried.

I sighed, heading for the kitchen. Just as I was putting the kettle on the stove the doorbell tinkled, signaling a client.

"Welcome to Shibuya Physic Research," I said, suppressing the groan that threatened to leak from my throat. I went to see who it was.

A timid looking woman stood nervously looking at me. "Um, hello. My name is Narumi Hanajima. Is Shibuya-san here?" the woman asked, wringing her hands agitatedly.

"Do you have an appointment?" I asked with a smile. Customer service the most important thing in running a business even when you feel like crap.

"Um, yes," Narumi muttered, "I'm sorry for intruding."

"That's alright. One moment please," I said, leading her to the couch.

"Thank you," she called. I knocked on Naru's door softly. Even that light tap made my ears ring.

"What?" he groaned as I opened his door. His elbow rested on his desk supporting his head and covering his eyes.

"There's a client waiting," I said quietly. He groaned and got up from his chair, following me out. Narumi's eyes widened at how young Naru was, but he just ignored her.

Lin came out not to long after. As they began to set up I went to fetch the screaming kettle before I threw it at a wall and got yelled at for damaging the office. When I came back with four cups of tea Narumi was introducing herself. I set a cup of tea down in front of everyone before going to stand behind Naru's chair.

She nodded thankfully to be before continuing, "I woud be very grateful if you took our case Shibuya-san."

Naru ignored her and instead asked, "Can you describe the activity for me?" His voice was steady, controlled as always, but Lin and I could tell he just wanted to read a book.

She stopped, taken off guard by his sudden question. "Um, well, I run a small concert hall for small orchestras, performances, auditions. Well, you see, ever since an accident several years ago it has been very difficult to have anyone perform. The performers usually end with serious injuries that land them in the hospital for a month or so," she told us stuttering like crazy.

I stared at her with wide eyes. It was that bad? Naru would definitely have to except the case at this rate.

"The lights fall on them during performances. Several have been lifted to the ceiling and then dropped. They've been pushed down or over the stairs when they're completely alone. Thrown against walls. Worst of all is that some of the women have been raped," she said, looking into her cup of tea.

"Have an of the events listed happened to you?" Naru asked, his hands interlaced in front of his mouth. He was considering it. Probably depending on her answer he would make his decision, though I highly doubted he would refuse this case.

Narumi looked at him, fear in her eyes. It was the fear of being scorned or rejected. She didn't want to tell him. "Yes, the last one and being pushed down the stairs."

"That's horrible. I'm so sorry," I muttered from behind my hand.

Naru glanced at me surreptitiously from the corner of his eye. "What was the incident and how long ago did it occur?" he asked next.

"A performer in a trio was shot and killed two years ago during a performance with one of her colleagues," she murmured, tears coming to her eyes.

Naru looked at Narumi's distraught and now tear stained face to my pleading gaze. "Leave contact information and your address with my secretary and expect us tomorrow. Have a room to use as our base ready."

I smiled broadly at him. The woman kept saying thank you as I showed her out. When I returned, Lin had retreated back to his bat cave and Naru sat with his head in his hands.

"The feeling is mutual. The wonderful gifts of a hangover," I said quieter then I would normally speak.

"Never again am I letting Gene talk me into drinking," he said in response.

I laughed softly. So it had been Gene's doing. It seemed a little odd to me that someone like Naru would be drinking at all. Sometime's Gene's capacity for persuasion amazed and scared me.

The fact that I had to call the others popped into my mind. No doubt I would be dying by the time I called the third person.

Sighing, I pulled myself from my seat. "Thanks for taking the case," I told Naru with a smile, kissing him on the cheek before taking off to make the calls.

My face glowed bright red and a small smile graced Naru's lips.

…

**So, that was not as long as I was expecting it to be, but at this moment in time I am busy packing for my trip to Disney and I was dragged around the city all day though I got a book out of it so it wasn't so bad**

**It's official, packing is my worst enemy**

**Well, hope you guys liked this chapter and review please!**


	5. Chapter 5: A Reminder

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ghost Hunt ;(**

Chapter 5: A Reminder

Three hours in the van squashed between Lin and Naru with nothing to do had put me in a horrible mood. I grumbled my annoyance, glaring at the ground. My hangover from yesterday had disappeared, but I was still kind of sore.

We stood in front of the concert hall. I stared up at the building in astonishment. "She calls this small?" I asked, incredulously.

A large building covered in red and gold paint loomed above us. The doors were made of dark wood, giving it an air of elegance.

Narumi came out of through the front doors followed by two men. She was fidgeting with the hem of her skirt. She gave us a wan smile looking tired. Maybe she was sick?

"Hello Shibuya-san. These are the caretaker, Kotobuki and Natsume. They will show you to your room and around the building," she said, twirling her hair around her finger. Nervous habits, they're a bitch.

"Thank you," I said, feeling more than a little uncomfortable and irritated with the youngest of the two caretakers staring at me. He seemed familiar, but I couldn't remember why. For some reason seeing his face made me very very angry.

Naru had already noticed the youngsters stare. Scowling, he moved so that he was blocking me from the boy's view.

"Well then, excuse me," Narumi said, bowing low along with the rest of us.

As Narumi twitched away with all of her nervous habits we started the tour. For the whole tour Natsume walked behind me. At one point he tried to "touch" me, but Naru prevented that by snaking an arm around my waist and glaring at Natsume. Several time he tried to start a conversation with me, but Naru also prevented that by talking to me first.

When we finally finished setting up base, I stationed myself on the couch with a sigh and drifted into lala land. "Who could that boy be? I know I've seen him somewhere before, but where? And why does seeing him make me so angry?"

"Mai!" someone yelled at me, breaking through my concentration.

"Huh? What?" I asked, shaking my head and looking at Naru's annoyed expression.

A frustrated sigh escaped his lips. "Tea."

"Still enjoying our hangover are we?" I said in a teasing tone before taking off to go get the tea. Idly I wondered how long he'd been trying to get my attention in the first place anyway?

The kitchen was cold. I stood close to the stove trying to stay warm. Leaning against the counter waiting for the water to boil I let my mind wander. Something clicked in the back of my mind.

"No, it can't be!" I cried. It couldn't have been him. The realization of who and why I was so angry at Natsume prevented me from noticing the tipping kettle.

Hot boiling water spilled over my right hand, scorching my skin. "Ow, damnit!" I shouted, turning on the cold water and shoving my hand under the freezing stream.

"Mai, what happened?" the team asked as they came into the kitchen to find me with my hand now in a cup of ice and my other hand covering my face.

Someone came up and touched my arm. "Mai?"

I nearly jumped out of my skin. I looked around at all the worried face looking at me. "W-why are you guys in here?" I asked, trying to revert back to my cheerful self, failing miserably.

Well, almost.

They paled at my smile, not knowing what to say. John came to the rescue by breaking the silence, "We heard you yell and we got worried that something might have happened to you."

"Um, no, not really. I was just being careless and got burned. It's not early enough for something to happen, probably," I said, not sure why I didn't believe myself.

Evidently neither did Naru. "Knowing you, something is going to happen soon," He said as he inspected my burn, "Miss Matsuzaki, treat Mai's burn."

"Alright," Ayako said, taking his place.

"Hey, I'm not that bad!" I cried, glaring at him.

"Yes you are," he retorted before turning and walking back to base.

"Naru!" I yelled, "Don't walk away when I'm talking to you!"

Monk restrained me as I tried to lunge after him out the door. "Mai, calm down. I'm sure he did that on purpose. Plus you're badly burned."

"Yeah, he said that because he just loves the rise it gets out of her," Yasu said, snickering.

I blushed and stopped struggling. Ayako caught my stationary hand and began her treatment while she had the chance.

"So why did you yell if the first place if I may ask," Masako said before Yasu could carry on with his teasing.

"Oh, I uh, remembered something about one of the people on our case," I said evasively.

"It's about that young caretaker who was staring at you isn't it? Naru seemed pretty P. about it if I might add," Yasu said teasingly, hitting the nail right on the head.

I didn't reply, only blushed harder.

"It is about him!" he cried happily, "What? Did you fall for him? Oh, that's gonna hurt poor little Naru. I'll take him if you don't want him."

"No, more like I wish I never had," I muttered sheepishly, not looking at anyone.

"Then what?" Ayako asked. I shook my head. She sighed in annoyance before beginning to mop up the kitchen. "Now go back to base and rest."

I took off back to base before Yasu, Monk, John and Masako could follow me back for more interrogation. When I got there I hid behind the couch where they wouldn't look for me.

"Mai, what are you doing?" Naru asked crouching down to look at me behind the couch.

"Hiding," I whispered.

He stared at me with amused eyes for a few moments before turning back to his file and the monitors.

…

**Sorry, I won't be able to update until maybe Sunday, I'll try though**

**Review please and I hope you liked this chapter :D**


	6. Chapter 6: A Nightmare

**Sorry for not being able to update for awhile. I was in Disneyland and I couldn't do anything after we got back to the hotel each night**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ghost Hunt**

Chapter 6: A Nightmare

Mai's POV:

It was pitch black throughout the hall. We were getting ready to head back to our hotel rooms. I was walking around making sure the everything was in order and all the lights were shut off.

The darkness pressed in around me heightening my senses to the quiet foot steps echoing from behind me. My footsteps made no sound as I shuffled my way towards the back room.

Invisible eyes bore into my back, making me even more uncomfortable then I already was. "Is someone there?" I called, stopping and turning around to look into the gloom.

Only silence greeted my ears. The feeling didn't disappear though. I hurried into the wings, planning on taking the short cut into the lounge.

Someone slammed me against the wall, knocking all the breath out of my small lungs and slamming my head against the wall. Stars exploded in my vision.

Even with my disorientation, I felt my attacker grab my wrists with one hand while the other clutched my throat tightly and forced them over my head.

"No," I whispered, fear spreading through me like the plague, "Please don't."

The man's hot breath blew into my face ruffling my bags. Alcohol saturated the wave of warm carbon dioxide making me gag at he sickly sweet smell.

"If you won't give me your love then I'll just tae it for my own," he whispered in my ear, releasing my throat and trailing that hand up my shirt. I coughed, trying to regain my breath.

I struggled against his grip. When his hand traveled further past my waist band I screamed, "Don't touch me!"

"No, stop touching me! Don't touch me!" I screamed before one of his hand clamped over my mouth, leaving me to sob. When he was done he left me to hurt all over and wallow in despair.

…

Naru's POV:

A couple minutes after Mai had crawled behind the couch I heard her breathing ease into a steady rhythm indicating that she had fallen asleep.

I got up and pulled her out from behind the couch and set her on it instead. She must have been quite tired to fall asleep in such an awkward position though I had no idea why she was tired since she had slept half of the way up here.

"Where was she?" Monk cried as he walked in to see Mai sleeping on the couch.

"Behind the couch," I said, sitting back down in my chair as the rest followed Monk into the room.

"Why?" he asked, confused.

"Hiding from you three I believe," I said. Out of the corner of my eye I spotted Jamie reaching from a pair of scissors that sat on the coffee table. I snatched up the scissors and gave him a crayon instead.

On the couch, Mai muttered, "No, please don't." After a half of a minute she said, "Don't touch me!" She struggled against an unseen force.

"Mai, wake up," I said, gently shaking her shoulders.

"No, stop touching me! Don't touch me!" she screamed as loud as she ever had followed by a long, ear-piercing screech. Her voice dissolved into muffled sobs.

I retracted my hands. Had I done something to hurt her? Or maybe it was a dream? If it was a dream I had no idea what was going on in it.

Lin stood, guiding Jamie out of the base and into another room. Everyone rushed over to us shouting, "Mai!"

Tears rolled down her distraught face as she opened her eyes. We stared at each other for a few silent moments before she launched herself into my arms. Her sobs increased along with her tears.

I wrapped my arms around her, stroking her hair softly to try and calm her even just a little bit. It didn't work.

Loud sobs wracked her small, fragile body. "It was so horrible!" she cried between sobs, "He did such a sick thing! Why? Why would anyone do such a thing to her? I feel so dirty."

Her hands clenched my shirt tightly. Her wrists and neck were stained with dark purple bruises. They bloomed, forming large hand prints.

My eyes widened just a millimeter. I grabbed her wrists gently to get a better look at the bruises, but she jerked away while simultaneously still crying into my already soaked shirt.

I could easily guess what had transpired during her dream now. Wrapping an arm around her, I looked at Yasu.

"Yasuhara, I need you to check for any charges of rape committed by any male who has played or worked here. Along with any other information you can dig up. The rest of you, go take the temperatures of the rooms and see if you can sense anything. I could care less who does what," I commanded.

"Yes sir!" they shouted with smiles before walking out and shutting the door behind them.

"Calm down Mai," I told the still sobbing girl in my arms once their footsteps had disappeared down the hall, "It's over. You're alright, it didn't really happen."

"Yes it did! It happened to her! It was so painful Naru! I can't even begin to imagine how she felt!" Mai shouted, shaking her head.

That made me wrap my arms tightly around her and shut up before I could say something stupider then I already had.

**So how was it? Do you think I was too mean for putting Mai through something like that? I'm sure I would freak just as bad as she did if I even had a dream like that, don't even get me started on what would happen if that even actually happened to me.**

**Review please so that the next chapter comes quicker :D**


	7. Chapter 7: A Fight

**So I thought that since I hadn't updated for a long time I'd give you 2 chapters in one day, I was home sick anyway. Hope you like this chapter :D**

**Disclaimer: Sadly, I don't own Ghost Hunt T^T**

Chapter 7: A Fight

Mai's POV:

"I'm scared Naru," I sniffed after a long time of silence, "What if that really happens to me? I don't think I could deal with that."

"Nothing's going to happen to you, I won't let anyone or anything hurt you," Naru said, tightening his arms around me.

"But how do you know?" I asked.

Naru sighed and took my face in his cold hands. I flinched, but he didn't let go. My eyes were closed, tears still spilling down my cheeks unchecked, but I could feel him staring and waiting for me to open my eyes.

Slowly, I opened my eyes to find his indigo ones. "I promise," he said, then leaned down, pressing his lips to mine. Without a second thought, I started kissing him back, my tears drying up and my sobs all but disappearing.

When we pulled apart he held me against his chest. "Now do you believe me?" he asked.

"I never said I didn't," I whispered, relaxing into his embrace and falling asleep to the rhythm of his heart beat.

To soon for my liking, I was awoken by the sound of fighting. Slwoly, I opened my eyes to gage the disturbance.

"You are not allowed in here," Naru said, standing in front of me.

I looked around Naru's legs to look at the man in the doorway. Natsume stood there, glaring at Naru, but when he noticed me peeking from behind Naru he smiled.

Naru glanced down at me. I sat up quickly and grabbed the hem of Naru's jacket, looking around him.

"What do you want Natsume?" I asked, malice hidden in the back of my voice.

Everyone started at my tone. I had never really talked to someone with such undisguised hatred before. Not even when I first met Naru and thought he would let horrible things happen.

Natsume flinched, but carried on, "Come on Mai, after all these years you still hate me?"

"Who wouldn't?" I asked, glaring at his fain niceness.

"Mai, what is he talking about?" Monk asked, looking between the two of us, confusion etched into his brow.

"I don't know, most sane women," he growled, what little self control he carried beginning to slip.

"No, most sane women would hate you as much as I do," I growled back, sounding more like a wild dog then a girl right about now.

"I don't know why you hate me!" he yelled.

"Like hell you don't! You know exactly what you did wrong!" I yelled back my voice louder than his by a good amount.

"Both of you calm down. What are you guys talking about?" Ayako asked, but we both ignored her.

"Then please, be so kind to enlighten me! What did I do that was so wrong that would warrant you hating me so vehemently?"

I was standing by now and probably would have launched myself at him if John and Naru hadn't been holding me back. "You tried to force yourself on me. You lied to me. You cheating on me. Must I go on?" I spat at him.

"I only did those things once. Every guy does it at least once!"

"Don't you dare, don't you fucking dare try to say that you only did those things once," I hissed menacingly like a feral. Everyone backed away from me except for Naru who was still restraining me. "You did it over and over again."

He rolled his eyes and said again, "Every guy does it."

"That doesn't make it right or mean you should do it too!" I yelled, "And how would you know that? You're not every guy!"

"So? It's in the past. Why can't you just forget it already?"

I stared at him in disbelief. "Get out," I heard a cold voice say to Natsume over my shoulder. Naru's arm was wrapped tightly around my waist, but I wasn't so sure if it was to hold me or himself back from hurting him.

"You have no right to tell me what to do. I'm talking to her, not you, so piss off," Natsume said, glaring at Naru.

I bristled, griping Naru's arm more tightly. "Don't talk down to him like he's less then you, you mutt."

"Oh, so you've already found a new boyfriend. I was right, you're just a slut."

"What did you just call her?" Ayako started to ask before I cut her off.

"It's been two years. Get over me, get over yourself and get out," I said slowly and deliberately, pronouncing every syllable.

He stared at me. He scoffed, turning towards the door, "I don't even know why I'm trying to get you back. I'm to good for you anyway."

As he opened the door three shoes flew at the back of his head along with mine followed by several crayons from little Jamie. Natsume glared and flipped us the bird before slamming the door as several more shoes and crayons flew at him.

I slumped to the ground, already exhausted. Naru sat down heavily on the couch, sighed. It was quiet for a long moment before Ayako burst out in agitation, "What an asshole! How could you date a guy like that Mai?"

I shook my head, not knowing the answer myself. Shakily, I got to my feet. "I'm going to make tea," I said, stumbling to the door.

"Ouch!" I said as I clutched the door knob. The burn on my right hand reminded me that it was still there with a sharp stab of pain. "Can someone come help me?" I asked sheepishly.

Naru stood up. "I'll help you," he said before we walked out.

**So how was it? Was it okay? I'm not really used to writing drama, but for this chapter I was going off of my own experiences, sort of, well, the things that Natsume did was from my own experiences**

**Anyway, hope you liked this chapter, review please!**


	8. Chapter 8: A Revelation

**So this one is quite a bit longer then the usual, but that's because I want to get this case over because I like this next case. Next chapter will be the end of this case.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ghost Hunt because if I did I would have probably accidentally killed Mai by now (Naru: And then I'd have to kill you.)**

Chapter 8: A Revelation

We walked slowly, not saying a word. The silence stretched on as Naru prepared tea. Finally, he spoke as he set a cup of tea in front of me, "I know this might not be the best time to ask, but can you tell me what happened in your dream?"

I sighed putting my head down on the counter. After another few moments of silence I spoke, telling him everything. "It was just so horrible," I ended, my head still down on the cool counter tiles.

Tears stung at the back of my eyes as the renewed memories rushed past my eyes. It was a wonder that I hadn't starting crying yet because usually I'd be balling by now.

Another silence that was neither comfortable nor uncomfortable folded around us unbroken even when warm arms encircled me. I turned my face into his shirt, soaking it for the second time today. Soon though, my tears dried and we just sat there hugging.

"Told you they weren't drinking tea," a smug voice whispered, slicing our blanket of silence right down the middle.

"Did you know 'I told you so' has a brother? His name is 'shut the hell up'!" another angry voice whispered.

Naru shot a glare toward the intruders as my face grew increasingly red. Apparently they felt the burn of Naru's penetrating glare because not a minute later another voice whisper/cried, "Oh shit, he noticed us! Move move move!"

That had to have been Yasu. He's the only person I know who would ever say something so…odd. There were scrambling sounds and the door slammed. Naru sighed.

"No peace anywhere," he muttered. To my dismay he unwrapped his arms from around me, taking our cold cups of tea to the sink.

I was staring down at my hands when warm breathe ruffled my bangs. "Don't look so dejected, it doesn't suit you. A smile suits you better," Naru whispered teasingly.

I looked up in surprise. Sure, I had been hoping we would go back to the way we had been when we had dated three years ago, but I never expected us to return to the old ways so quickly.

He pressed his lips to mine. My brain short-circuited like it usually does whenever I kiss Naru making it so that even breathing was a chore that I could barely remember to complete. We were so absorbed in each other that we took no notice of the temperature steadily dropping.

"Come out, come out, where ever you are little one," an icy voice called, effectively ending that little adventure of ours.

I groaned. At the moment I was so annoyed with everything that it prevented me from even feeling the usual fear that engulfed me when a ghost made a move. All I wanted to do was sit around and kiss my boyfriend like a normal girl instead of getting smashed around every hour.

Suddenly, without warning, my chair was slammed against the wall. My head struck the wall with a loud crack. Stars exploded in my eyes.

"Mai!" Naru shouted, rushing over to me.

"You're mine," a voice whispered in my ear before my world went black.

When I came to I was back at base. It weirdly lacked Lin's repetitive typing, Monk and Ayako's usual fighting ore Jamie's continuous questions.

A soft woolly blanket was draped over me and a warm hand clasped around mine. The end of the blanket sloped down and was drawn taut around a black clothed figure sitting on the floor.

I came face to face with Naru as I shifted to see who it was. Pain shit through the back of my head, spreading its fingers wide over my skull as I jerked back in surprise.

"Ooooowwww," I whined, leaning against the arm of the couch. Thick gauze ran over my forehead and behind my head. My fingers came away with blood when I touched the gauze at the back of my head.

Cool fingers took mine and began unwrapping the bandages. "Please try to be more careful. We won't be able to get you to a hospital till this case is solved."

"Why's that?" I asked, sitting still and allowing Naru to change my bandages.

"Because everything is sealed shut," Naru said in a quiet, calm voice.

"Why?" I shouted, trying to stand up, but was shot down by pain. One of these days Mr. Pain I will win against you.

"Calm down. It was the ghost. It tried to abduct you several times while you were sleeping," Naru said, "It seems to have mistaken you for the woman in your dreams or something of the sort."

"Dang it!" I shouted, making my head pound, "Why does this always happen to me?"

"It's just because they can't have you because I have you. Their jealous," Naru said, a grin hidden in his voice.

"You know what I just realized?" I asked.

"That Yasuhara is weird and needs to get laid?" Naru asked.

"No, even though that's something I would never expect to hear you say before hell froze over. No, I just realized that I really really really want ice cream and orange juice," I said with a grin.

"Even though that sounds utterly revolting together we have both in the kitchen I believe," Naru said, pulling me to my feet, "I guess it's alright to give you a little bit since you just woke up."

"Yay," I said in a happy little girl's voice, holding Naru's hand all the way to the kitchen until he started getting me my wants.

"Mai, Naru, are you in here?" Yasu called, bursting through the door with a thick manila folder in hand, "It's about time that you two woke up. Mai, you've been asleep for two days!"

I stared at him with wide eyes, a spooning stuck in my mouth. I was taking out the spoon and opening my mouth to say something when Naru cut me off. "The folder Yasuhara. What did you find?"

"Oh yeah, right. You know it took me forever to find this information right? Anyway, it looks like one of the men in that trio that Miss Hanajima told us about had been charged with mutiple rape charges. One of which came from the woman of the trio. I found something weird though. Take a look at this picture of the trio that I found in one of the back rooms," Yasu said, holding up a photo of three people holding various string instruments. Two men stood on either side of a young woman.

"Hey, that's Narumi!" I cried around a spoonful of icecream, staring at the picture.

"Aya Hanajima, _twin sister _to _Narumi Hanajima_," Yasu said, "After Aya Hanajima's mysterious death during a performance with Kotobuki Sato the man who was thought to be guilty of her murder, Hiro Kodo, hung himself on the stage. Narumi Hanajima subsequently closed down the renowned music hall only just reopening it three months ago," Yasu read from a newspaper article he had scavenged from some newspapers that had been left lying around.

"That gives us two possible whos and a where, but no why," Naru muttered, catching hold of his chin with one hand and his elbow with the other.

"Where is everyone?" I asked, pinching the bridge on my nose.

"Sleeping," Yasu said with an involuntary yawn.

I downed the rest of my orange juice and set my spoon down in my empty bowl. "Then I think I'm going to see if I can sleep. Somehow, I'm exhausted," I said, standing up.

Naru nodded. "I think that's a good idea for all of us."

Yasu grinned before running of to the guest rooms. Naru and I walked more slowly toward the guest rooms. There were six doors lined ups along the hallway.

Only one door stood ajar, the vacant room.

Room 1: Monk, Ayako and Mizuki.

Room 2: Yasu, Kotobuki and Natsume.

Room 3: Lin and Jamie.

Room 4: John and Masako.

Room 5: Narumi who requested to sleep alone for what reason we did not know.

Which left room 6 for Naru and me to inhabit.

We stared at the door for a little while before Naru took my hand and pulled me into the room. I changed into a over-sized night shirt in the bathroom while Naru changed into whatever he planned to sleep in.

He sat in an armchair in his thinking pose when I walked out. He chest was bare, only his legs covered in a pair of dark blue pajama pants.

"Where's your shirt?" I asked with a giggle, sitting on the arm of the chair.

"Jamie took a pair of scissors to all of the night shirts I had," he answered, looking up at me with a half grin.

"Oh man, you are oh so very tired," I said with a grin as I blushed and Naru pulled me onto his lap.

"Is that bad?" he asked, wrapping his arms around my waist.

"Of course not," I teased, giggling.

"That's good because if it was, I would have had to take extreme measures."

"What kind of extreme measures?" He didn't answer, but I could feel him smiling as he kissed my neck.

…..

Blackness surrounded me, but my body glowed with the light it usually does during a dream. I looked around. "Wonder where Gene is," I thought.

Just as that thought passed through my mine a long-fingered pale hand appeared in my field of vision. "Hi Gene," I said with a grin, "What are you showing me this time?"

"A situation I hope you never have to experience for yourself," Gene said as e helped me up.

My smile turned into a frown. Slowly, the blackness began to lighten to show a room with four people in it. Twin girls and two men. The men stood next to one of the sisters, smiling down at her lovingly.

"Don't touch him, he's mine," the forgotten twin hissed as the other touched Kotobuki's arm.

Hiro ground his teeth slightly as Kotobuki ruffled the girl's hair playfully. "Love me. Only look at me. Not him, me," Hiro growled under his breath.

The room faded and a flight of stairs materialized. One of the twins walked down the stairs, a huge smile plastered on her face and a pregnancy test in one hand. The test was positive.

The other twin came up behind her, outstretching her hands. "No, don't do it!" I screamed just as she shoved her twin. She tumbled down the stairs, sprawling at the bottom of the stairs, her leg at a weird angle.

Once again, the scene disappeared to be replaced by the stage. Kotobuki and the twin that had been pushed down the stairs were on stage, performing for a well mannered, well dressed crowd.

Out of the corner of my eye I saw a glint from one of the private boxes. I looked up and found the other twin pointing a gun at the one on stage.

She said something that I couldn't make out before pulling the trigger. A shot rang out. I screamed as the girl I know knew to be Aya dropped to the stage floor. Blood splattered over me and pooled under her body. I screamed again.

…..

My own screams jerked me out of the dream turned nightmare. I sat up quickly into someone's arm running my hands over my face, my arms and my clothes. "Blood! Blood! I'm covered in blood! Get it off! Get it off!" I screamed, frantically pulling at my sweat soaked shirt.

"Mai calm down! What happened?" Naru shouted over my screams.

"Aya! So much blood! Hanajima killed Aya! She killed her own sister! So much blood!" I sobbed into Naru's chest, my arms tight around him.

Naru looked towards the door where the rest of SPR, the two caretakers and Narumi stood. Narumi's eyes were huge and she turned, running back to her room. Naru motioned for them to leave. They reluctantly closed the door.

"I'm sorry you had to see that. It'll all be over soon and you can forget all about this case and what happened," Naru said, holding me tightly to his chest.

"I hope so," I whispered.

**How was this chapter? A bit to mean? because that's how I feel right now, anyways, review for Yasu or he might not get a girlfriend next chapter**


	9. Chapter 9: An Accusation

**This chapter will be the end of case 1, new case next chapter**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ghost Hunt**

Chapter 9: An Accusation

Mai's POV:

"Okay Monk, begin," Naru said. His voice rang loud through the quiet auditorium.

Everyone stood at various points throughout the large space. Monk stood in front of the stage in his traditional monk attire. John and Masako stood near one of the exits, John dressed as a priest and Masako wearing casual clothes that are easier to move in so that if something goes wrong she can move quickly. Lin, Jamie, Ayako and Mizuki were over by the side exits with Ayako dressed in her priestess kimono. Naru and I stood up the main aisle from Monk with the camera set in front of us. The rest stood close to the main entrance/exit except for Narumi who was no where to be seen.

Monk nodded and began to chant steadily. The temperature slowly dropped until everyone's breath came out in puffs of white clouds. Then the light burst, showering us all with hot glass.

"Mai!" Naru shouted, covering me as we all crouched and ducked our heads.

"What are you doing?" a livid Narumi shouted, storming in. She stood on the stage, an angry expression donning her features, coloring her cheeks red. "I hired you to expel the ghost not to damage my building!" She was more animated then I'd ever seen her since meeting her.

"Narumi, get out of here! We've already lost Hiro and Aya! It's dangerous! Please get out of here!" Kotobuki shouted from the main entrance, but it was to late.

"You! You're the one who killed my dear Aya!" an infuriated voice said, ringing through the auditorium.

Narumi fell to her knees clutching at her throat. She began making noises as if she was being choked. "Narumi!" Kotobuki called, but stayed put as Monk began chanting. Narumi soon fell to the stage coughing.

I clutched at Naru's arm in fear as screams erupted around us. "Love me Aya! Love me!" Hiro's anguished voice screamed. Something grabbed my wrist and jerked me.

I fell forward onto the thinly carpeted floor before I was being dragged toward the stage. "Naru!" I screamed as rug burn seared up my side adding another burn to my inventory.

"No! You're mine!" Hiro yelled. I was flung onto the stage, sliding across its slick surface until friction pulled me to a stop.

John and Ayako started their chants as Monk finished and started his again. The freezing grip disappeared from my wrist as the screams increased.

Altogether, as if someone had flipped a switch, the screams ceased and the room fell silent. The exit doors sprung open flooding the dark room with sweet sunlight. Naru rushed to me.

"Mai, are you okay?" he asked for lack of a better question since he obviously knew that I wasn't just by looking at me.

"I think…ouch!…that my wrist is dislocated, there's a burn along my side and my head and old burn have began bleeding again," I said as pain shot through the back of my skull, over powering all the other pains. My vision began to grow dark around the edges.

He looked lost. I didn't think I'd been hurt this badly during a case before, not even the one with the cursed family. He put his arms under me and lifted me gently.

"Rest now. We'll handle everything," he said, kissing my forehead.

"Okay," I sighed, closing my eyes and embracing the smothering darkness.

…..

"Finally back," I cried happily, bursting through the door of the SPR office.

"Welcome back Mai!" everyone shouted. Naru followed closely behind me as our friends embraced me in rib crushing hugs. Well, all except for Masako who was now seven months pregnant.

In the end, I had a broken and dislocated wrist along with a third degree burn on my side and a slight concussion. The burn on my hand had split open, causing even more pain then it had when I first received it.

Those things had landed me in the hospital for a week and a half. I was finally out and happy to be out of that white antiseptic prison. Though I hadn't been the only one trapped there. Naru had stayed there with me the whole time, choosing to be imprisoned along with me.

"Did you thank Naru yet?" Masako whispered in my ear.

"Of course I did, when he first came and when we got out of the hospital," I whispered back.

Masako flicked my forehead, rolling her eyes. "Not in words you dummy," she said, "I think he deserves a bit more then that."

"Oooooh," I said, giggling. I turned, catching Naru's collar in my hands and bringing his head down to my level. "Thank you," I whispered before planting my lips on his.

There was laughter behind me as I heard Monk fall over, stunned. I knew we would pay hell for that later, but at the moment I really could have cared less.

That was until the door burst open for the second time today causing us to break apart. "Hello honey! We're here to ask if you've decided to take on that case we sent you a little bit ago!" Lluela Davis shouted.

**Hope you liked the ending! Review please for the sake of Yasu meeting his love bug next chapter!**


	10. Chapter 10: A Question

Chapter 10: A Question

Everyone stared at the new arrival in surprise. "Why was she here? Was she just here to visit with her son or maybe to antagonize him? If so, they would love to help with that one." Brought you by the minds of Monk and Yasu.

From behind Lluela, they could see Martin with an apologetic smile. He shrugged when Naru gave him a questioning stare. He wouldn't have been able to stop her even if he wished as hard as he was capable.

"Mother. Father. Why are you here?" Naru asked in English, stepping forward and away from Mai.

"To take you to England for the case of course. You can't not take it. Plus, I've already bought your whole group flight tickets," she responded in the same language. Before Naru could voice his annoyance she pushed him aside come over to Mai. "Mai! It's been so long! I missed you!"

Lluela threw her arms around Mai, squeezing her in a tighter hug then even Monk could give. She had caught her healing had between their chest, causing spasms of pain.

Mai grimaced, but hugged back. "Mother, Mai's wrist is broken. You're making it worse," Naru said in his usual tone. You would think that he was an emotionless robot if you didn't know what indicators to look for.

"Oh Oliver, you're such a good boss. Why can't you date sweet little Mai? Oh, even better! Why don't you marry her? That would be so cute. You'd make such cute babies!" Lluela yammered on in English, effectively confusing Monk, Ayako, Masako and Yasu plus the two kids.

"Um, why exactly do we have Naru's mommy and daddy standing in our office?" Yasu asked.

"That's because we have a case waiting in England for you guys. So chop, chop. Let's get packing," Lluela said in Japanese, surprising even her husband. When exactly did she learn English?

Everyone stared at her without moving. "The plane leaves at midnight. That gives us three hours. The tickets are nonrefundable. Noll, I will be very angry if you make me wait any longer for you to take this case," Lluela said with a scary smile.

That made everyone, even Martin, leap into motion. The women moved toward the door, except for Mai, to go pack their corresponding mate's things and their own. Mai and the men began gathering equipment.

"Nah uh, Mai, you're coming with me," Lluela said, a sly grin creeping across her lips as she grabbed her uninjured wrist.

"But…" Mai began before being cut off.

"No 'buts', let the men do the heavy lifting." She pulled her out the door in one sweeping motion.

The walk to Mai's apartment was most definitely no a quiet one. Lluela jabbered on about unimportant happenings in England. Something about a marriage that Mai could really care less about. All she cared about was finding something sweet to eat.

They got into Mai's apartment and she had began packing before something Lluela said caught Mai's attention. "So how's your relationship with Oliver going? Have you guys had sex yet?"

Mai's medicine bag dropped onto the floor with a loud _thunk!_ as Mai's face turned tomato red. "Good lord Lluela! To ask such a question! Have you no shame?"

"None what so ever which answers my question. I won't be so shameful though as to ask how it was. That'd be despicable," she said, laughing loudly, "You'll definitely make me very pretty grand-babies. You guys looked so cute when you were kissing earlier. I'm going to have so much fun teasing the two of you."

Mai sighed, finishing her and Naru's packing, going over to the fridge. She fished out her piece of cake that was in a portable container before grabbing the bags.

"Come on, Let's go. Naru will start getting annoyed soon," Mai said.

"Noll needs to calm his horses," Lluela said, but followed closely behind her anyway.

…..

"Your mom has no self-control at all," Mai said, shaking her head once they had boarded the plane.

"You're not the one who had to live with her for nearly 14 years out of your life your life," Naru said with a grin," How about you take a nap, this is going to be a long flight."

"That sounds nice," she said, leaning against his shoulder and quickly falling asleep.


	11. Chapter 11: A Dream

**Sorry for the late late update. I've been busy with driver's ed. Plus school's almost over. This case is a crossover with the anime Black Butler(Kuroshitsuji). Don't worry, if you've never read/watched it before I'll be explaining everything and describing the characters. Plus there will only be two from the anime who aren't dead. For those who have, there are a lot of spoilers for the second season.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ghost Hunt… *sob***

Chapter 11: A Dream

Mai's POV:

"Mai, wake up! Come on! We're bored!" 2 female voices whined in my ear, I could feel Naru tensing to say something scathing.

"What do you want?" I growled, slightly opening one of my eyes to glare at the intruders of my peaceful sleep, "What time is it anyway?"

"A little past four in the morning. We're still passing over Russia, about half of the way through," Naru said in an aggravated voice.

I glared at Lluela and Ayako who seemed to be bouncing off the walls of the plane even when sitting down. They bounced up and down in their seats. Good thing nobody else had booked first class seats, though I had a feeling Lluela had largely something to do with that.

They stared at me expectantly. They reminded me of a pair of little kids who had been given to many sweets and had no nap. I groaned and pushed away from Naru's shoulder. They weren't going to leave me alone otherwise.

"What do you want?" I asked tiredly, rubbing my eyes.

"To talk of course," they sang, grabbing my arms and pushing me into the small, compact bathroom. "So how's college been going?"

"You dragged me in here for that?" I asked exasperatedly. Sighing I answered, "I kind of forgot to tell you that I got my Bachelor's Degrees." This made me grin.

Ayako made an indignant sound in the back of her throat. "Ugh, and you never told us something that important!"

"In what?" Lluela asked, ignoring Ayako.

"Well, Naru knew. I got them in literature, meaning I also learned English, and psychology," I told them. I swirled my finger over a design on my cast.

"Are you planning on being a writer therapist?" the two asked.

"Already sent in my manuscript in. The publisher said it should be published by December. The psychology was just something for fun. It really hasn't helped in my decoding of Naru though," I said, giving a little nervous laugh.

They made 'oooooh-ing' sounds. Looking at each other they exchanged sly grins before turning back to me. "So, how have you been lately?" Lluela asked, a note hidden in the back of her voice.

"Good," I said slowly. They were up to something, I knew it, but where that was headed I didn't want to know and it probably wasn't going to be pretty either.

"No throwing up? No cravings? No weird sleeping schedule?" Ayako asked, the same not hiding in her voice. She suppressed a grin.

"Not that I've notice." Again, I said this slowly, hesitantly. I definitely where this conversation had headed.

"Well…" they began, but I pushed through them and out the door before they could finish the sentence. Crashing into someone, I landed on the floor hard.

"I'm so sorry," I cried standing to help the person up.

"Young Master, are you alright?" a tall, black haired man asked with a slight British accent, helping the young, blue haired boy off of the floor.

"Yes," the boy said with a heavy British accent.

"Mai, are you alright?" Naru asked, coming up behind me. He placed a gentle hand at the small of my back.

"Yes, I'm okay," I told Naru before turning to the two males in front of me, "I'm sorry for running into you." I studied them. The tall one reminded me of Lin and how he takes care of Naru. By the looks of it, that's exactly what he was to the boy, maybe more.

"No, I am sorry. That was my fault due to my carelessness. It will not happen again," the boy said before turning back to the first class cabin and taking their seats at the very front.

Wow, that makes me feel so mush better that I never noticed them at all. I sighed in annoyance. "I'm going back to sleep," I said, walking back to our seats.

…..

Heat pushed in on me from all sides. Flames licked at every surface, savoring the taste of wood, paint, carpet and such other things leaving black trails were they touched. They jumped at me, trying to stop me from my pursuit as I ran through the burning halls from room to room.

"Mother! Father! Where are you?" I screamed, darting through the smoke and heat, searching frantically.

Smoke burned in my lungs, making it even harder to breath. I flung another door open only to stop on the doorway to stare at the horrifying sight before me. Blood pooled around the edges of my shoes, staining their blue surface burgundy.

Tears streamed out of my eyes and down my face as I felt my knees collapse under me. My knees and hands landed in the ever spreading crimson liquid. "No!" I screamed as loud and long as I could. I clutched at my hair, spreading the blood over my face making me scream again, "No!" I stared at my hands in horror.

Who's blood was this again? Where was I? The fire closed in around me, searing me from head to toe.

**Hope you liked it. It's a bit short, or maybe it's the regular length. Either way I hope you liked it.**

**Review for more Mai teasing! - **brought to you by Yasu.


	12. Chapter 12: A Surprise

**Okay, so this is the start of their case basically, all of their usual pre-investigation antics. The underlined sentences are in English to them. Hope you like it.**

**Disclaimer: I own neither Ghost Hunt nor any Black Butler**

Chapter 12: A Surprise

Mai's POV:

Something shook my shoulder once. When I refuse to open my eyes, the person did it again. "Wake up, Mai. We're landing," a quiet voice coaxed in my ear.

My eyes slowly opened, releasing the tears that had been built up behind them, to stare into the navy blue eyes of my boyfriend. He smiled down at me for a second before he noticed the slow tears streaming down my cheeks.

His smile fell and worry took its place. "What's the matter? What happened?" he asked, wiping away some of the tears with his thumb.

I rubbed my sleeve over my face roughly, trying to get every tear, and shook my head. "I'll tell you later when we don't have an audience," I said quietly.

A falling sensation overtook me as we descended. Tires met with pavement and my ears popped painfully. Collecting our baggage and the drive to the place of haunting was long and dull.

Over the duration of an hour Ayako and Lluela tried to interrogate me followed by Yasu and Monk trying to question me about Naru and me. I was getting ready to slap someone when the ring of my phone saved me.

Yasu picked it up before I could grab it and answered for me. "Hello, may I help you?" he said in an obviously forced accent. "Mai? Me know no know Mai."

"Yasu! Give me back my phone!" I cried, lunging for him over the seat. I landed while the knee between his legs and very close to a very important man part. "If you want to keep you boys safe you'll give me the phone," I threatened.

He instantly relinquished the captive cell phone. "Sorry about that. May I ask who's speaking?" I said as I moved to the back of the van.

"Did I interrupt you having sex?" my publishers cheery voice asked.

"If I was having sex I wouldn't have answered the phone and Yasu isn't my boyfriend so the answer is no," I replied.

"Aw, that's to back. Anyway, darling, where are you? I can't seem to find you anywhere," she said, a sliver of annoyance worming its way into her voice.

"That's because I'm not in Japan. I'm in London with SPR," I explained calmly, stifling a yawn.

Silence greeted me. I would have thought she'd hung up, but that's not the kind of person she is. "And why exactly would you be in such a place?" her strained voice asked. It might have been just my imagination, but she sounded angry.

"Research?" I said apologetically, phrasing it more as a question. I tensed and waited for the blow up.

There was a rush of air on the other end. "Okay, never mind, I was just calling you to tell you we need your second book by January."

"What? Why? The first one isn't even out yet!"

"Well, actually, funny story. My boss' boss wanted you book published sooner then soon so we had to release it last week. We already have piles upon piles of fan mail waiting for you and a TV interview scheduled in a week and a half."

It was my turn to breath deeply. I pinched the bridge of my nose until my slowly building headache eased a bit. "Okay, fine, just please notify me sooner please."

"Alrighty. Toot-too-loo darling." A click sounded in my ear. I stared at my phone disdainfully for a few minutes before sighing in resignation.

Climbing back to the front of the van, nestling back into my spot next to Naru who gave me a questioning glance. I shook my head and closed my eyes, resting on his shoulder.

…..

"Welcome to our home," five teenagers said, greeting us at the door to a huge manor with bright smiles, "The room for your base is this way."

We followed them up a large staircase that spilt in two half way up the wall to lead to different wings on the manor. The teens led up down a log, colorfully decorated hallway and past many door. A strange feeling began filling my chest as the number of doors steadily increased.

At one point, we passed a door emblazed with the family crest. It was blackened and char as if it had been through a fire. The sensations from the dream hit me like a back of bricks. Smoke filling my lungs, fire burning my skin. Spontaneously, I was sent into a coughing fit.

Monk patted my back rhythmically as we rushed to get to base. In the room, one of the red headed twins led me to an elegant couch stationed in the middle of the room.

"Are you alright?" the boy asked me in English before anyone could even open their mouth.

"I'll go fetch some tea," a iron-blue haired girl said, bowing before she exited the room.

Naru sat down on my other side, slipping his hand into mine. Masako and Ayako sat on the couch across from us with the other three twins while the rest of the team began setting up. "Miss Matzuzaki. Miss Hara. Go take the temperatures of every room. Try to see if you can sense anything," Naru directed.

They nodded and set on their task. He turned back to the three teens seated on the opposite couch. "Now, can you please explain to us all of the activity you've been experiencing."

**Hope you liked it, even though it was one of those uneventful filler chapters. Next chapter the ghosts don't come in, but all of the characters for this particular case do. Be prepared for a gender confused daddy and some odd people.**


	13. Chapter 13: New Guests

**Alright, first to make sure no one gets confused, yes, one of the names is from Fullmetal Alchemist, but no, that does not mean any of the characters are actually part of the story. Hope you like this chapter, it took me a long time to type up.**

**Disclaimer: If I owned Black Butler or Ghost Hunt do you really think I'd be here right now?**

Chapter 13: New Guests

"Well, first off, sometimes at random times we'll hear explosions from the kitchen, a china set or other things will be broken, or something odd will happen to the garden, including it being set on fire. Those are the innocent ones. They never end with people being hurt," the red-headed twin girl began.

"Most of the others are pretty disgustingly horrible," the third crimson-haired girl cooed.

"Now we're very short on staff because a good amount have been killed. Some have been ripped apart. Other have been found hung in the office. Some stabbed to death with their uterus removed if they are female. There are a few who have been found…well found in the basement incinerator or drowned in the pond out back. Of course, the staff aren't the only ones who have been affected, but still," the tall sandy blonde sain, an unlit cigarette smashed between his lips.

The male twin nodded, "More often then not, if you're up late at night you can hear a child's maniacal laughter and if you're walking around you can see the apparition of a young blonde boy dancing around. He's usually accompanied by a tall, dark, golden-eyed butler. The boy likes to play disgusting tricks."

The female twin shivered, "Yes, like stuffing dead mice in your shoes or leaving dead animals on your bed. Sometimes people's clothing are saturated in gosh-knows-what when they wake up."

"Plus, in the bath, if you're not careful, something will grab you. Though that happens around the house in the first place sooo…" the third twin said, giggling. I could tell she had some major problems.

Her giggling trailed off into nothing. I stared at her through tear filled eyes as my coughing had not subsided. I could still feel the smoke clouding my lungs.

The blue haired girl walked in holding a silver tea tray. Delicately, she handed me a silver encrusted tea cup. "Did you tell them about us being pushed down the stairs?" she asked the male twin.

"I was just getting to know that November," he said with a wry grin. "But I guess you already got to it for me."

"Don't patronize me Alphonse, it's not becoming and remember, I know where you sleep at night," she snapped. Their quibbling reminded me of the way Naru and I fought except without a certain component that I couldn't put my finger on.

Naru cleared his throat and the two stopped. A blush spread across November's face in embarrassment. "Is that all?" he asked.

"I believe so," they said at the same time.

Naru nodded. "Thank you for your corporation."

They all smiled brightly. "If you need anything just come and find us. Your rooms are just down the hall. As you requested, there are 6 separate rooms all in close proximity to each other," said November politely.

"Thank you November-san, Alphonse-san, and…" I trailed off, looking toward the other three.

"Maria!" the red-headed twin girl said excitedly.

"Victoria," the last redhead purred.

"Barley," the sandy blonde said with less enthusiasm, but a huge grin, "It was nice to meet all of you. Thank you for helping. And you don't need to use the '-san' thing. Our names are fine."

I smiled sheepishly and nodded my head. I heard a loud 'thwack!' from behind me. "Hey, stop staring at the blue-haired beauty and get back to work Yasu!" Monk shouted, laughing.

November's just cleared face turned a bright red. So she knew Japanese. That would make this case a little easier, I thought before turning around to find Yasu preparing his retaliation.

"Oh Monk, darling, you know I only have eyes for you," Yasu said sarcastically.

The sound of the front door opening then closing put a halt to another retaliation. "Please excuse us," the five teens said, confused looks plastered on their faces. They bowed before hurrying out the door.

"I wanna see who it is," I told Naru before standing up and heading for the door with Naru following in my wake. I leaned over the railing, watching the new arrivals. A boy who looked exactly like the boy from the plane except that he wore clothes more suited for nobility in the late 1800's and early 1900's stood in the middle staring up at the large painting hanging at the top of the stairs.

Beside him stood a man that also looked identical to the one on the plane. He stood tall and very-handsome scanning the are with his blood-red eyes. His gaze lingered on me for a few moments. Like the boy he wore odd clothing. A suit with a tail coat rather then a regular jacket.

"It is still the same is it not my lord?" the black clad man stated. Again, his voice was identical to the other man's.

"Yes, especially that painting. I cannot fathom the reason to why they never took it down," the 13-year-old said in the same heavy British accent as the other boy, a smirk curving his lips, "Or why those dimwits never burned the damned place to the ground."

"It was their home. I doubt they would have done it even if you'd commanded them," the man said, amusement coloring his voice.

The five teens cleared their throats nervously. "May we, um… inquire about your reason for being here?" Barley asked.

"Ah yes, my great-grandfather used to live in this manor. His name was Ciel Phantomhive, as is mine. And if I remember correctly, all of your names would be be Maria, Alphonse, Victoria, Barley and November, yes?" the boy asked, each name having its own tone to it.

They stared at him in shock. "Y-yes, that means the you're…" November began before her voice faded out.

"That I am your cousin. Our families are not close," he explained with a slight shrug. A false note in his voice was becoming more and more prominent to myself, as if he was starting to need to lie through his teeth.

The five teens were apparently oblivious to this small fact. I cocked my head to the side, becoming more confused by the second.

"My great-grandmother was Elizabeth, Ciel's fiancé," November explained in a choked whisper.

Pain flitted across Ciel's face for less then a millisecond. "Ah yes, I heard something of the sorts."

"Bassy honey, I'm home!" a man wearing all red with crimson hair the same shade as Victoria's hair sang, bursting through the door.

A shiver rocketed up through both Ciel's and the man's spines. They spun around quickly. "Grell!" Ciel shouted.

"Oh Ciel, Sebastian! Will told me you'd be here! It's been so long," he purred in the same manor as Victoria had.

"Father!" Victoria cried happily, launching herself into the man's arms. Now I knew where her problems originated from. The apple definitely doesn't fall far from the tree.

**Okay, so how was it? Grell is an off kitten and I hope I'll be able to transfer that over to his daughter as well. Review for the sake of Monk's well-being!**


	14. Chapter 14: A Disturbance

**I am really really sorry for not updating sooner. Please forgive me! I've just been really busy with school and what not. I have 3 graduations to go to and one of them is for high school. For that one I have to play that marching song with the orchestra. Anyway, here's the next chapter, hope you like it.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ghost Hunt or Black Butler… so sad.**

Chapter 14: A Disturbance

The manor was finally peaceful. Most roamed the manor on their own, looking in rooms and examining the manor's possessions displayed in intervals along the hallways. The SPR team sat quietly in the base except for one lone Mai who traipsed the halls looking for interesting happenings.

Mai's POV:

"What to do? What to do?" I said to myself, walking through the huge halls. Voices approached from around a corner so I picked the closest room and hid.

"Your boss is so odd," I heard November say with a laugh.

"Yeah, one time, right after waking up from being possessed he got right back to work, but he'd already figured out the case! He even got mad at the spirit, actually it was a god, and decided we should exercise it after he made the rule that we don't hunt gods or demons!" Yasu cried, faking outrage at the idea.

She laughed. "That is funny. His girlfriend is Mai right? She's so cute. They make a cute couple," she said, smiling.

"Oh, so you're not interested in him? That's a first especially for someone as pretty as you. And to answer your question, yes she is. Though we suspect that they might be engaged, but Mai doesn't wear a ring so we're not sure," Yasu explained.

I snorted behind the door. What a ludicrous idea. Though, thinking about it, I would love for us to be actually engaged. That would be my life's dream come true. At least I'd get something done before Masako.

"You're right. It does seem like they would doesn't it. Oh, that's gonna break Maria's and Victoria's hearts," November said in more of an amused tone then a sad one.

"Why? Are they both after Naru? Poor Mai, this always happens to her," Yasu said happily. Jerk.

"Oh no, not at all. Maria yes, but Victoria, well she's a bit gender confused and believes she's a guy. She's going after Mai as a result," November answered, waving her hand to say no.

I blanched. That's going to make it harder to move around the house then it already is. "Why me?" I whined to myself as their voices dissolved down the hall.

I turned around to see what room I was in. Bookshelves lined that walls so I might had thought it was a library or study if it weren't for the large desk and huge window at the end of the room.

The desk's wood was dark and well-worn, but also well cared for. Photos were scattered across the top of the desk. Why were they here? And who was looking at them in the first place?

Cautiously, I picked up a few, gasping. They were pictures of what looked like 3 servants, a huge white dog and…Ciel and Sebastian! In one, Grell clung to Sebastian's arm while a bunch of other unknown people piled on top of Ciel.

I flipped a picture over to the back, searching for a caption or something of the sort. On the back of one with the Sebastian and Ciel look-alikes I found a caption that read: "The young master and Sebastian after a hard days work of catching criminals. Date: 4/20/19XX."

"What are these?" I wondered allowed before a loud explosion echoed up from the kitchen.

I pushed the photos I held into one of my pockets before rushing out the door. I found everyone except for Yasu and November congregated outside the kitchen doors staring in at what was left of it.

"That fucking moron. Still destroying my kitchen in death," Ciel muttered under his breath angrily.

"What happened?" I asked the group in whole, not really caring who answered me.

"Seems like the ghosts are getting started early. This was one of the four they mentioned at the beginning," Naru explained while examining the charred remains of the kitchen.

A crash came from the dinning room followed closely by a flash and the smell of rotting flowers emanating from the garden. In the dinning room we discovered a broken tea set and several smashed plates.

The garden, well that was a lost cause. A good portion of it was burning under the heavy scrutiny of a raging fire while the other half was killed by a type of weed killer of some sort.

Ciel sighed in resignation while Sebastian just shook his head. "Remember that time I cut all your bushes to look like skulls? Oh that was so much fun," Grell crooned, parading around with a pair of garden shears.

"Grell, out those away before Will decides to demote your scythes again. I'm sure you remember what happened last time he did that?" Sebastian asked, grabbing the back of Grell's crimson jacket.

As Victoria joined in on the conversation Yasu and November showed up carrying buckets and other gardening and other cleaning equipment. "I'm sorry about the disturbance. They get really active when new visitors arrive. Speaking of visitors, don't we have several business men coming to discuss the company?" November asked handing out the supplies to Maria, Victoria, Barley and Alphonse.

"Oh good lord, yes we do! I must excuse myself to prepare dinner!" Barley cried, grabbing some of the inside cleaning supplies and rushing to the kitchen.

"I will assist him," Sebastian said before following him.

"I guess that leaves the rest of the cleaning to us," Maria whined, picking up a scrub brush and scrutinizing it.

"Then we will stay out of your way. Everyone, back to base," Naru commanded. We all followed him back into the house except for Yasu who insisted on helping clean up the mess.

…..

_I was walking through the halls of the manor. It was pitch black, making it extremely hard to see where I was headed. Suddenly, a hand came down on my shoulder making me yelp loudly. I spun around to come face to face with Gene._

"_Oh my god, you scared the crap out of me!" I shouted, clutching at my chest._

_Gene smiled mischievously before putting a finger to his lips. He pointed down a hall where a girl in a frilly red dress and blonde pigtails led one of the business men down the hall by the hand._

_A bucket of ice water slid down my spine. He shouldn't go with her. He was going to get really hurt if he did. "No! Don't go with her! You're in danger!" I called after the man._

_I followed them into the office I had been in earlier except this time the pictures weren't on the desk. The man crawled up onto a chair, standing still as the girl slipped a noose around the man's neck._

"_No, don't so it!" I screamed as she grabbed the edge of the chair and started pulling it out from under the man._

_A hand clamped over my eyes and pulled me away from the scene in front of me._

…..

I bolted up right in bed, flinging myself over the edge. I slammed into the door, struggling to get it open in my haste. I tore my way down the hallway, sliding at certain points.

The door soon came into view. It stood ajar as if someone had been in it recently. I hesitated before pushing the door open.

A scream ripped its way up my throat , echoing throughout the manor. One of the business men who had come earlier that afternoon hung from the rafters of the room, creaking on his rope.

"Mai!" Naru shouted from behind me, his hand clamping over my eyes, "Don't look."

"What happened?" Monk shouted as I heard everyone else running towards us.

There were several more screams from the girls and several more men telling them not to look. I could make out the voices of John, Lin and Monk. "What happened? Is she alright?" I heard Barley and Alphonse ask.

Naru shook his head, holding me close to his chest. "No. Lin, please contact the authorities," he said before leading me down the hall away from the group.

**Hope you liked it. Review please! They bust my confidence as an author :D**


	15. Chapter 15: 5 Down and How Many More?

**Sorry for the late update. I just went on summer vacation so I've mostly be sleeping. Anyway, I've had major writer's block so if this chapter sucks, don't be surprised. Another thing, I realize that in the last chapter I spelt "boosts" as "busts", haha, sorry that was my stupid mistake. Enjoy the chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing to do with Ghost Hunt or Black Butler D:**

Chapter 15: 5 Down and How Many More To Go?

Mai's POV:

"That's what happened?" I said, finishing up what had happened in my dream for the second time. Once in Japanese and once in English.

Everyone, even the leftover business men, sat in the base. I had a cup of tea clutched between my hands and leaned heavily on Naru who had an arm around my shoulders. We were all quiet for a long moment.

November hiccupped on the other side of the room, sitting close to Yasu. "That's how my great-grandmother died. I can't believe she'd do something so horrible." I could hear Lluela in the corner translating quietly for the rest of SPR.

"Why did she commit suicide?" Ciel asked in a quiet voice, anguish hidden deep in his eyes. His eye patch was clutched in his hand, allowing his purple-ish pink eye to be seen.

"Ciel died, our great-grandfather. She committed suicide when my grandmother was only seven because she was so depressed. She came here one night and…just never came home," she told them, another sob bubbling up from her lungs as she turned her face into Yasu's shirt.

Ciel's hand clenched into a tight fist. "That stupid girl. Why would she do such a stupid thing?" Ciel muttered under his breath so that only Naru, Sebastian and I, the closest one to him, heard him.

He turned away from us quickly and left the room. Somewhere in the house, the ominous sound of a wall cracking reached our ears.

…..

A long high pitched scream woke everyone from a short cat nap. After the fiasco at one in the morning everyone had gone to try and catch maybe the faintest sliver of sleep before we had to be woken for another day of work, but that was now shot to hell and never coming back.

"November!" I heard Yasu yell as we ran towards her room.

"What the hell is that? Get it away from me!" November screamed, cowering against a wall, "Yasu, help me! What is that?"

Something fluffy and brown lay on November's bed next to her pillow. It oozed a thick red liquid that gave off a sickly metallic smell. It soaked easily into her white bed sheets leaving a nice crimson stain.

"Naru, what is that?" I whispered, crouching with Yasu next to the sobbing November.

"It's a…dog, I think," Monk said, leaning away from the lump of blood matted fluff. Lluela acted as translator once more.

"That is like really gross," Victoria whined when we were walking to the base. She clung heavily to my arm, somehow reminding me think of Grell and Sebastian.

"Oh my god, what is wrong with these fucking ghosts?" Ayako shouted from the base, "They're really starting to piss me off!"

"What's your problem?" Masako asked, giving her an annoyed look as the baby kicked at her ribs again.

"They wrote this creepy message on the wall," Ayako whined pointing, "I don't know what it says, but I just know its creepy!"

On the wall in blue paint the color of Ciel and November's hair someone had wrote: "My darling sweet bluebird, have you finally come back to me? - Your's Lord Druitt."

Sebastian chuckled behind me, making me jump about 10 feet in the air. "I believe I know a method to rid the manor of Lord Druitt, but…Young Master is not going to be please with it," he said, looking towards Ciel with a smirk. Sometimes, Sebastian makes me believe that his is a hardcore masochist with the way he acts.

"Not again," Ciel groaned, "Didn't I endure enough hell the first time Madam Red subjected me to such torture."

"Yes, but at the time we were attempting to catch a murderer. I will assist you the corset," Sebastian said, following a reluctant Ciel out the door and down the hall.

Grell snapped to attention realizing that Sebastian had disappeared. "Oooo, he left. He's helping that little brat put on that amazing dress. I would look lovely in that if I wore it," Grell squirmed and whined, running off after them.

"Monk, exorcise the room we found the body in and the garden. Father Brown, exorcise the kitchen and dining room," Naru ordered.

"Why not November's room?" Barley asked with the help of Lluela's translating.

"Because we're not sure if that's where they're bound," John explained before going off to get ready.

…..

"I'm ready," came Ciel's sullen voice from the other side of the room, "Sebastian, do I have to do this?"

"You do if you want Lord Druitt finally gone and not grabbing for your **cousin**. Come on out," Sebastian said, standing in a rather odd looking suit with glasses and his hair slicked back.

Ciel came out of a side room, blushing furiously, in a frilly baby pink dress. He wore either a wig or extensions the same color as his hair. A pink hat sat sideways, draped over the eye that the eye patch usually covered.

"Are you fucking happy now? What will this accomplish?" he asked annoyed.

"It will give Lord Druitt what he desires," Sebastian said with a sly smile as if he knew what was going to happen.

As if on cue cheers erupted from all directions. Ciel lurched forward into Sebastian, staggering under the weight of an unseen person.

"My lovely bluebird! I have finally found you! Just one kiss and I may pass on!" the ghost of a blonde-haired man purred, hanging off of Ciel.

A visible shiver ran up the core of Ciel's spine in one sharp spike bringing with it a title wave of goose bumps displaying the amount of revulsion at such an idea.

Lord Druitt didn't wait for a reply. Instead, he leaned in without a moment's hesitation. Slowly, Ciel turned a sickly green as the seconds ticked by. After one long minute Lord Druitt disappeared in a shower of gold with a wave and a smile at the rest of us.

"Oh dear lord, please save me," Ciel muttered, rushing for the kitchen. I cringed as I heard the wet splatter of sick spilling into the kitchen sink and John's calm voice trying to help.

Water ran for several minutes. Ciel stumbled back into the foyer, everything about him askew. "I am going to murder you Sebastian," Ciel growled glaring at Sebastian, his British accent thicker then ever in his anger.

"Only at your request Young Master, but you are a long ways away from ever being saved," he said, bowing.

"Shut up, I already knew that. Grell, you can have your way with him if you like," Ciel grumbled, slowly making his way up the stairs while stripping off the dress.

"What did **that** mean?" I asked allowed to the whole SPR group in general.

"I have no idea, but it sounded oh so very interesting," Lluela chirped, clapping her hands.

"I have not a damn clue 'cause I understood zip of that conversation," Yasu quipped, hands resting on his hips.

"Yasu, when you do that you look gay. Are you **trying **to scare November off?" I asked before steeling a side long glance at Naru.

He had his thinking cap on, hand cupping his chin, elbow grasped in his other hand so I gracefully left him alone. Yasu, blushing in embarrassment, stalked off followed by the rest of the crowd.

"Yasu, I need you to go to the library and collect information. Take November to help translate," Naru called up before we could reach base. Well at least all of the exorcisms had been smooth and successful.

**Hope you liked it. Review to help Naru's mood improve the slightest bit :D**


	16. Chapter 16: Rebroken

**Okay, so here's the next chapter. To answer a question some of you might have, I wrote Lluela's name the way its written because in the fanfics I've read that's the way it's spelled and that's also how it's written in the character listings. Plus, it makes her look even more unique so I'm keeping it that way, sorry for those of you who don't like it that way.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ghost Hunt or Black Butler**

Chapter 16: Re-broken

Mai's POV:

"Naru, do you want some tea?" I asked, standing and stretching from my seat.

"Yes," he simply said, scanning over scattered papers.

"Anyone else?" I asked at the doorway in both English and Japanese. The whole of SPR raised their hands plus November, Barley and Alphonse. "I'll be right back."

The halls were pitch black at this late hour. It was close to one in the morning. No body had bothered to even try to attempt to try to sleep that night, trying not to be the next to wake up with a dead animal on their pillow, or dead themselves.

The giggling of a little boy floated to me from down the hall. If I squinted, I could see the glowing form of a blonde haired boy at the very end of the hall who wore clothes similar to Ciel's.

He danced down the hall, still giggling as I ran after him. "Hey, kid! Who are you? Why are you wondering around here? You know it's dangerous?" I called, chasing after him.

He didn't answer. Soon, he disappeared and I slowed to a crawl as I got to the stairs. "Wonder who he was," I murmured.

I began my decent down the stairs when I heard the boy's maniacal laughter and his voice saying, "You have no idea how dangerous little girl." I spun around to try and see who it was, but a pair of hands slammed into my chest, knocking the air out of me.

The world slowed to a crawl as I fell. The boy grinned at me from the top of the stairs, a black clad butler with golden honey eyes at his side.

It felt like minutes before the adrenaline in my body took over and blackness blanketed over me. I felt no pain as I landed on the hard marble floor.

…..

_I sat up slowly, clutching at my throbbing wrist. I was the only source of light in the endless expanse of darkness before Gene came out of no where per usual, offering his hand to help me up._

"_You and November have already had it rough haven't you?" he asked with a knowing smile._

_I took his hand with my good hand, pulling myself up, grinning. "It wouldn't be a real case if we didn't right? So what are you showing me today?"_

_Gene shook his head, smile still in place. "I'm showing you some things that happened a long time ago. Before any of us where born, like usual. I would really really not show you, but…you need the information. Remember to tell Naru about your dreams."_

_I nodded as a scene came into focus. A man fell down the large stairs in the foyer. He was frantic and scared. It reminded me of an old black and white movie because I couldn't hear his gasps of pain or the concerned questions of the maid, gardener and cook. He backed away down the stairs, skittering down the hall on all fours._

_I followed him slowly. Every few seconds he would glance over his shoulder in fear. Soon, he crawled into a room, slamming the door behind him and then into a small cupboard._

_A small click locked the door. He started banging on it, screaming. A little door slid open on the door to reveal two piercing scarlet eyes. The man began pleading, pounding harder on the door. The eyes smiled as the door eased shut and then fire started to burn through the metal box._

_Gene turned me away saying, "I think that's enough of that."_

_I was facing another scene. We were standing at the top of a still-being-constructed bridge or arch of some sort._

_A large black cloud lay in front of us. From the center an anguished scream of something male and female echoed. I couldn't see into the mass, but every once in awhile a white gloved hand would surface, tossing blood covered white feathers or other things left unmentioned._

_As the cloud began to disappear I caught sight of Sebastian's face, a thin fanged smile spread wide across his face before Gene turned my hand away. In the direction I was pointed to look I saw Ciel dangling from a steal rod, his eyes squeezed shut and blood soaking his side._

"_Three…two…one…__" Sebastian said, each word punctuated by the clack of his toothpick high heal as he walked toward Ciel._

"_Zero__," Ciel finished, opening his eyes and letting himself slip from the metal rod._

_Sebastian's eyes widened in horror and surprise. It took him until Ciel hit the water for him to move into action and jump after Ciel._

"_They're…Ciel and Sebastian. But how? It makes no sense," I complained, turning back to Gene, but he was already gone._

…..

"Is she alright?" I heard several voices yell in both Japanese and English. They sounded far away and distant except for one voice.

"Mai, can you hear me? Mai, please say something," I heard Naru's voice loud and clear, more frantic then I'd ever heard. I cool hand pressed to my cheek, trying to coax me awake.

"Her wrist is broken again," John said.

I opened my eyes. Everything looked blurry and grey except for Naru's frantic face. It was only a little fuzzy around the edges. "Mai, can you see me?" he asked.

I groaned in response, nodding and then stopping. That really kind of hurt. A sigh of relief escaped his lips. "How many fingers am I holding up?" Alphonse asked holding up his hands.

"Four," I groaned, trying to sit up, but gasping as pain shot up my arm.

He looked at his open hand, a frown creasing his face. "Uh, not quite," he said.

"I am too correct. The thumb is not a finger," I said, throwing my arm around Naru's neck to keep me from falling back.

Maria, Victoria, Barley, Alphonse and November all laughed including chuckles from John and Naru. He must have been really worried to laugh in front of everyone. "She's alright. Did someone call a doctor?" John asked.

"Yes, I did," Lluela chimed in, raising her hand eagerly.

"Good. How do you feel?" Naru asked.

"Like I got pushed down a flight of stairs," I said, grinning.

"You don't fall?" November asked, looking back up the stairs at the spot where the boy and butler had stood.

"I'm not that much of a klutz!" I cried. Slowly, it dawned on me that nobody had allowed me to look at my wrist. They had all been trying to distract me from something, maybe from the pain that was shooting up my arm? But what was causing it?

I looked down before anyone could stop me to see my hand bent at an unnatural angle. "Okay, that's disgusting," I murmured before looking away with my hand over my mouth, "I feel sick."

"Hold on a little longer. The doctor will be here soon. If I had pain killers on hold I'd be treating you already," Ayako explained, running a hand over my forehead, "Sorry."

Shaking my head, I said, "The thing is that you tried right?" I smiling at her over Naru's shoulder.

She smiled and nodded.

…..

Bright light ripped through the soft blackness, tearing me from my dreamless sleep. "Ugh, holly hell," I growled, covering my eyes.

"Oh, so you're finally awake. Nice to see you in the world of the living," Naru said from over by the window. He made his way over to me, giving me a soft kiss. That must have been the first one since starting this stupid case.

"Yeah, what time is it?" I asked, examining my newly cast wrist.

Naru glanced at a clock. "12:08 p.m."

"Oh, so I've been asleep for…" I said, counting back in my head, "About nine hours."

"Make that 33 hours," he said, sitting down on the arm rest.

"Gosh dammit, not again," I said before sighing, "Whatever. So where is everyone?"

"Somewhere around the house. They were cooped up in here until less then 30 minutes ago," he said, staring out the open window to where Jamie ran followed by Lin.

I told Naru about my dream before a contented silence settled over us. Without asking, I moved to sit next to Naru, resting my head on his shoulder. It was so rare for us to have even a moment of silence or alone time. And of course that moment had to be ruined by the sharp screams.

"What now?" I wondered, running out the door with Naru.

**Here's another chapter for you. Hope you liked it :D Review please for a good ending this case, I'm going to try to make the next one the last. **


	17. Chapter 17: A Proposal

**So here you have it, the last chapter to the Black Butler-Ghost Hunt crossover case. There may be more times where they come in, but I'm pretty confident that it'll only be November with them most of the time. Hope you like the end to this case! (:**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing concerning Black Butler or Ghost Hunt**

Chapter 17: A Proposal

Mai's POV:

"What the hell?" Monk shouted, hugging Ayako and Mizuki tightly, "Naru, what the hell?"

"We only got rid of the harmless ones, not the harmful. It's one of the maids," Naru said, his face emotionless, but he wouldn't let me see what was on the bed.

Several sets of running footsteps were heard down the hall from us. A frantic Barley, November and Yasu skidded to a stop, almost falling over. They leaned on their knees, panting hard.

"Mr. Shibuya, someone's been found drowned in the pond," Barley gasped, looking up at Naru.

"I found someone in the downstairs incinerator!" November shouted, looking like she was about to fall over from exhaustion which I wouldn't put past her since I was the only one who had slept in the last 2 days.

"Naru, a maid was found ripped apart in one of the studies," Yasu cried, slumping against the wall.

"Yasu, gather everyone in the base. We have to discuss something," Naru commanded, waiting until Monk, Ayako, Mizuki and I were safely out the door to follow us and shut it.

…..

"To get straight to the point, Ciel Phantomhive and Sebastian Michealis are both demons," Naru said, stunning those of us who spoke English and confusing those who couldn't.

Yasu was the first to break the ever growing silence with a furious cry, "What? What did he say?"

"He said that Ciel and Sebastian are demons," November translated, "Ciel…does that mean you're not my cousin?"

Ciel sighed, rubbing his eyes with his thumb and index finger. "No, I'm not your cousin. I'm not your cousin. I'm your great-grandfather. Elizabeth was my fiancé."

"Does that mean that I'm part, what, demon? Is that even possible? And if you were alive then why didn't you stop her from killing herself?" she asked, her eyes growing wide.

Ciel looked at Sebastian. He just stared back with the same question in his eyes. "We're not sure. It's complicated and it's possible, just like with Grell and Victoria," Ciel said.

"Hey, what do you mean?" Victoria shouted, bursting in through the door followed by Grell, "Is there something wrong with me?"

Sebastian met Ciel's questioning gaze. "Might as well. Grell is…" Sebastian began, but was cut off by a very annoyed Naru.

"A grim reaper. Now tell me about all of the victims of this house most likely killed by you," Naru said, his words stark as he gave Sebastian a bored glare.

Sebastian chuckled, taking a bow, "You are very good. Yes, I am the murderer of all but one of those. Alois Trancy who we believe pushed your lovely girlfriend down the stairs." And so he went on to describe several people. Alois Trancy, Claude Faustus, the triplets who served the Trancy hosehold, one visitor to the Phantomhive estate, Angela Blanc/Ashe Landers, and as to the one concerning the drowning they had no idea.

Naru went into his thinking pose again. "We have 8 spirits to exorcise and…" he said, turning to look at the team, "2 and a half people who can exorcise. Monk, Brown-san, are you up to the challenge?"

"Hey! What about me? I can use the trees here!" Ayako yelled, rage flaring in her eyes.

"Fine, are you 3 up to the challenge?" Naru asked, his voice cold.

"Hell yeah!" the couple shouted causing their baby to squeal and laugh. John just simply nodded his head.

"Good, be ready in 10 minutes. I want this case over," he said, turning and stalking out the door, "Tonight."

…..

We stood silently in the foyer, waiting patiently. Monk looked back at Naru, ready to go on with the exorcism. Naru nodded slightly, arms crossed tightly over his chest showing that he really wanted this case over.

I stood next to him with the world beginning to slightly curve around me. A wave of nausea struck me just Monk started chanting. "Ayako, John, you can start," Yasu said quietly into the walky-talky. On the other end of the lines we could hear John and Ayako begin their rituals.

Almost instantly screams erupted from the whole manor including the garden where Ayako was. "You won't get rid of my master and me that easily Sebastian Michealis! I'll just take your little friends then!" a man yelled.

He didn't go for Monk. No, that wouldn't be fun enough. No, he went for me. He rapped his hands around my throat, pulling me up the wall.

"Naru!" I yelled as the hands tightened around my throat.

"Mai!" everyone yelled, even Naru. I felt the air around me crackle with energy.

"Naru, don't!" Lin shouted, but it was too late. A blast of white hot energy blasted toward me. It hit the ghost square in the back causing it to scream and disappear. I fell to the floor, putting a hand on Naru's arm and felt some of the left over power spike up my arm.

"Claude! I'll get you for this!" another ghost screamed, presumably Trancy who headed straight for Naru. Monk's chanting increased. Trancy disappeared with a pop leaving our part of the house completely quiet. Screams still echoed from other parts of the house. Soon, though, they stopped all together leaving the manor eerily silent.

"They're all gone," Masako whispered, skittering into the foyer closely followed by John and Ayako who looked haggard and wan and Lluela.

"I think we should all go out before packing up for the flight home," Lluela said, grinning, "We could all go explore London."

"That sounds like…an amazing idea. I haven't seen London in over 50 years," Ciel said earning a nod from Naru.

…..

"Gene and I used to come here all the time when we were smaller," Naru told me as we made our way onto a deserted beach. He had a sad nostalgic look in his eyes.

Dark clouds swirled above us, threatening to dump massive amounts of snow on us. A cold wind whipped at our clothes, but the ocean still managed to look beautiful with its iron grey waters.

The wind blew again, this time carrying with it the voice of a disgruntled boy. "Would you stop being a wimp and do it already? You're giving me a hernia just watching you!" the wind whispered angrily.

"Did you hear that?" I asked, looking over at a chuckling Naru, "What?"

"Nothing. I just remembered something. Just keep walking this way. I'll be right back," Naru said before rushing off towards a cave that was lying straight in front of us.

I walked slowly, wondering what Naru was going to show me. I hoped it was something pretty like a starfish or something. I could us a good does of pretty that did not include seeing a boy dressed as a girl.

When I was almost to the entrance of the cave he came back out, offering his hand to me. I took it, smiling.

"Okay, now close your eyes," he instructed, putting a hand over my eyes and guiding me carefully deeper into the cave, "Now you can look."

I opened my eyes slowly to find myself surrounded by soft green light. Everywhere in the cave there was something tiny and glowing green. It looked like a million little green stars.

"Its so pretty," I breathed, my face split by a huge ear-to-ear grin.

Naru pointed somewhere to my right, saying, "Look over there. I think you might like what you see."

I turned my head. Spelled out in the little green glowing things was, "Will you marry me Taniyama Mai?"

I turned to stare at Naru in amazement. For several seconds I let the thought sink in and let my brain comprehend it. "I love it! Of course I'll marry you!" I screamed, flinging my arms around his neck.

**So there you go, the end of the case. How did you like it? Was it horrible? If you've got any suggestions for what Mai's ring should look like and maybe future cases, they are welcome. I know what I'm going to do next though. Review please!**

**P.S. I don't know where the cave actually is with all the little green glowing plankton, but I know it exists. I thought it was super romantic :D anyone agree?**


	18. Chapter 18: A Baby?

**Here's the start of the new case! This one might not be all that cool, I'm trying though, but this is an important case. Hope you like it!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ghost Hunt**

Chapter 18: A Baby?

"Ugh, back at work," Mai whined as she stretched. It had been a week since they had finished the case in England. They had all taken a well deserved vacation. Even the workaholic Naru had relaxed with everyone.

The door bell tinkled and Mai snapped to attention. "Hello, may I help you?" she asked with a bright smile.

A woman in a silvery-blue kimono stood in the doorway. "Hello. Would it be possible for me to talk with someone named Mr. Shibuya? I'm sorry that I wasn't able to call before hand. My hands have been tied lately," the woman said, scratching the back of her head.

"Oh yes, one minute please," Mai said, getting up and going to Naru's door. She opened it, stepping inside. "Naru, client."

"Come," he said, closing his book and getting up. Before they could even take a step Lluela burst through the door of Naru's office.

"My lovely daughter-in-law, you're coming with me," she sang, grabbing Mai by the wrist, "We're going dress shopping.

"Mother…" Naru began to say, but Lluela cut him off by slamming the door to the SPR building.

When Mai got back she was breathing hard. Bag after bag hug from her arms. "Naru, your mom is crazy," she whined, slumping to her floor, "Wait, what are you doing?"

Naru was standing in front of a box. He coiled a cord around his hand and placed it in a box. "Packing."

"Why?" she asked, getting up and walking over to him.

"Because we have a case and no one else was her to do it," he answered, grabbing another cord. He looked like a pouting little kid.

Mai threw her arms over his shoulders, hugging him from behind. "Hey, don't blame us. Blame Jamie and your mom. She's exactly like an excited little kid."

"Blame it on the little kids," Naru said in a joking tone, turning to face Mai. He wrapped his arms around her waist, giving her a small smile. "How about you call the others so that we can get this case over with and focus on the wedding."

Mai laughed. "Alright workaholic."

…..

Mai's POV:

_A baby's wails reached me over an electronic monitor. I got up quietly, trying not to wake my companion. Sleepily, I made my way to the baby's room to cradle the crying infant. Instantly, he settled into a calm murmur._

_Looking down at the baby lovingly, I noticed how much like Naru he looked. The only difference is that he had my light chocolate brown hair. I had a feeling that is he opened his eyes they'd be that beautiful dark navy blue that I loved so much._

_Oh, that's right. He's Naru's and my son. How could I have forgotten such and important thing._

_I nuzzled my nose softly against the boy's. He gripped my shirt tightly in one tiny fist. "Sleep well my little Gene," I whispered against the infant's soft cheek, setting him down gently._

The dream went dark and I flew to sit up in bed. "Oh god," I muttered, running to the bathroom to throw up.

"Mai, are you alright?" Naru asked, coming in just as I was washing my mouth out.

I frowned. "I think so. Maybe something we ate didn't agree with my stomach," I said, sticking my toothbrush in my mouth.

He frowned also, but waited until I was done brushing my teeth to say something else. "Are you sure? You have been eating more then usual and everything else seems to be fine."

"Yes, I'm fine. Come on . Let's go back to bed. We have a case tomorrow," I said, guiding him back to bed.

…..

"Mai, are you alright?" John asked, standing next to me.

"Yeah, I'm just bored. This is taking to long," I muttered. It had been an hour since we had arrived and I had puked again this morning. I crouched next to a pond, making waves with my finger.

With every passing wave, my reflection seemed to transform. By the time the waves had almost settled, the reflection of a beautiful black haired woman stared back at me.

She looked like she was about to say something, but Monk's voice cut in. "Mai, John, come on! She's here!"

I startled, snapping my head around to look over my shoulder at the entrance. Before we left, I took one more quick peak back at the water. Only I stared back.

The same woman from before stood in a silvery-blue kimono in front of the building to greet us. "Your room is this way and we have prepared a room for your equipment," she stated, eyeing the boxes and monitors everyone except for Masako and Ayako were carrying. She was so different from who she had been yesterday.

Naru nodded as she led us down a hall. On each side, sliding doors divided rooms. She slid one door open. "This will be the room for your equipment," she said, stepping aside to allow us access.

"Thanks," Monk and I said as we set our things down. For some reason nobody had let me carry anything heavy, they had all put something light in my hands.

"If we need anything we will come find you," Naru said without turning to look at the hostess.

Our hostess bowed, eyeing all of us girls before leaving. "Okay, so she's major creeper status," November said, helping me set up the shelves.

"Yeah, she kept staring at all of us girls," I said, grunting as I lifted one of the shelves. Naru came up behind me, helping me lift it up.

"Maybe she's a lesbian cougar," Yasu commented casually as he untangled wires in a box.

"Oh gross! I can't believe you just said that!" November and I shouted in unison.

"On that note, what's up with this place anyway? You never told us," Monk said, looking over his shoulder at Naru. I looked back at Naru since I didn't know myself.

"People have reported hearing a baby cry in the middle of the night. In the woman's bathroom, a woman appears around 2 a.m. Women have reported someone trying to drown them while they're taking a bath alone, being punched in the abdomen, feeling like their being watched and having their hair pulled," Naru explained, his arms folded across his chest, "All of them were pregnant whether they knew it or not and everyone has lost their baby."

John glanced toward Masako, who was only one month away from giving birth, fearfully, but sighed with relief at what Naru said next. "Each of them was less then 3 months pregnant. No children have been abducted though," Naru explained further.

"What a sexist ghost!" Ayako cried indignantly with a nod from Masako.

"Be quiet Miss Matsuzaki. Since this entity mainly targets women, they will have to be accompanied by one man at all times. Sleeping arrangements shouldn't be a problem since we were only allotted one room," Naru said, a little annoyed with the idea.

"Lovely," Ayako muttered, crossing her arms.

Before an argument could break out, I grabbed a thermometer and clip board. "I'm going to go check the room temperatures," I said, but was unheard. A fight had already broken out between a livid Ayako and Masako.

The only person who had heard me was John. "I'll go with you," John volunteered quickly. Anything was better then listening to those two argue with Yasu as the antagonist and referee.

We checked every room including the kitchen. Guests wouldn't be arriving until later so we also took the liberty to check the bathrooms. When we entered the women's bathroom, a cold chill ran up my spine. It felt suspiciously like I was being watched.

"Come on John, let's hurry up and get back to base," I muttered, getting jittery.

"Okay, let's get the men's bathroom first before we go back," John said, leading the way into the men's bathroom.

…..

"Hey, where did the Dark Duo go?" I asked when we stepped back into base.

They all shrugged their shoulders. Of course none of them would know. All of them are so blind that they never even saw two guys decked out in black walking around. Just when I was contemplating going and looking for them to see if either of them felt like they were being watched, they both walked through the door.

Suddenly, the feeling disappeared.

"Look at that! They work magic," I said with a grin.

Naru raised his eyebrow at me questioningly. I shook my head, laughing. He made a face that seemed to say, "Whatever."

He walked over to the monitors and switched them on. They showed different scenes around the building. "Oh, so that's what you were doing," I said, walking over to the screens. They had been using their time wisely unlike the sloths who sat on the couch.

**Okay, so I hope you all liked the start of the new case. I've been looking forward to this case. Still deciding on Mai's wedding and engagement rings. Suggestions are welcome! :D**

**P.S. - Review please!**


	19. Chapter 19: Being Childish

**Okay, so I never came up with a name for the client. Suggestions are welcome :D**

**Disclaimer: I will never own Ghost Hunt… *sobs in a corner***

Chapter 19: Being Childish

Mai's POV:

At this moment, the hostess decided to slide the door open. "Mr. Shibuya, the other guests are beginning to arrive. Dinner is being prepared. It'll be out shortly," she said in a quiet tone. She stared at me as if assessing my worth.

"Instruct the other guests to please leave our equipment alone," Naru muttered, watching the cameras. Out of the corner of my eye I saw his eyes smoothly glide to stare at the hostess.

Her eyes dropped immediately. "Yes sir." Wit that she took her leave, sliding the door closed silently.

"That's going to make it even harder to solve this case," Monk groaned, running a hand through his hair.

"Ooooookay, so what the HELL is up with her? I mean seriously, she looked like she was getting ready to eat Mai," Ayako said, a hint of annoyance coloring her tone.

"I told you. She's a lesbian cougar," Yasu said matter-of-factly.

"Oh my god, Yasu. Stop saying that. It's disgusting!" November cried, biffing him. He laughed, grabbing her wrists and giving her a kiss. Her cheeks burned with embarrassment.

Naru ignored them, turning his eyes back to the monitors. "Don't make me get a bucket of cold water," I told them teasingly and then turned to Naru, "Did all of the girls lose their babies in the first attack?"

Naru shook his head, leaning back in his chair. "No. They lost them after multiple attacks even though all of them were violent," he explained, closing his eyes for a second before getting back to work.

After that it was quiet for a long stretch of silence. He left us to our own devices as we waited for the food to arrive. I was sitting in a comfy, over stuffed armchair next to Naru. The warmth and comfort of the armchair combined with the feel of Naru's hand on the knee was making me sleepy. Within 10 minutes, I was out like a light.

…..

_The guest were all fast asleep as I made my way quietly down the hall, switching off lights that had been left on by absent minded guests or rowdy teens. The season was at its peak of business so every room was filled and then some._

_Suddenly, someone grabbed both of my hands that had been resting on my lower stomach and slammed me against the wall so hard that some of the doors rattled. Darkness seeped from the person, curling around my body and alerting me to who it was._

"_Rokujo, what are you doing?" I asked my husband quietly._

"_If its not mine then you can't have it," he whispered in my ear. The hand not clutching my wrists moved towards my abdomen._

_Fear cut through me like a hot knife. How had he found out about the child? No, more importantly, what was he going to do? "W-what are you talking about?" I stuttered._

"_You know exactly what I'm talking about," he whispered before shoving his fist roughly into my abdomen over and over again._

"_No!" I cried. Before the dream faded, I glimpsed my terrified reflection in the mirror at the end of the hall._

…..

I flew up on the couch. The bright lights of the base made my head swim and everyone turned to look at me. Most of them had chop sticks sticking out of their mouths at odd angles.

"Mai!" everyone shouted as I bolted down the hall to the bathroom in our room. Why they didn't have one in base, I have no idea.

Ayako held my hair back as I coughed several times into the sink. After it was okay to shut the water off, I washed out my mouth and brushed my teeth. "Are you okay?" she asked as I shakily walked out of the bathroom.

Everyone looked at me anxiously. I smiled and told them, "I'm fine. Really." By the looks on their faces, they did not believe me one bit.

We walked back to base. They seemed to have slowed down for me which was going to piss me off here really soon. I was using the wall to walk with my shaky legs that seemed to not want to carry me.

Naru scooped me up before I fell. He deposited me in the same chair that I had fallen asleep in before taking his own. The rest took their seats, resuming their conversation as if there was never a disturbance.

Before Naru joined back in though, he commanded, "Eat."

"I'm not hungry," I muttered, putting a hand over my now soar lower stomach.

Naru's steady dark blue eyes studied me. "You need food. It'll help with whatever you've contracted."

"No, I'm good," I replied, leaning my head on my hand and wincing as I put strain on my wrist.

"Stubborn," he grumbled, turning his eyes back to the table.

"I am not!" I cried indignantly.

"Are to," Naru responded childishly.

"Are not."

"Are to."

"Are not!"

"Are to!"

"Did you have a dream, Mai?" John asked, cutting in.

Naru and I looked at him. We slowly leaned apart since we hadn't noticed us leaning towards each other in the first place. "Yeah, how'd you know?" I asked.

"You had a dream and didn't tell us?" Naru asked sternly, disapproval lacing his voice. Odds were that only I noticed that slight difference in personality. He glared at me with annoyance.

"Well, I'm sorry that I was too busy puking up my least meal to tell you!" I shouted, already getting ready for another petty argument.

"Back to the point of interest. John, how did you know Mai had a dream? More importantly, what was your dream?" Monk interjected. We were on a roll today with how many times people have had to interrupt our arguments.

John pointed to my wrists. "You have developing bruises."

Naru grabbed my hand, pulling my wrist closer. He examined my wrist where purplish bruises were already forming.

"Okay, now your turn," Masako said. I sighed before explaining. I added every detail I thought was important. At the end, I paused.

"What did you see in the mirror?" November prompted, enthralled by my dream. It was the first time she'd ever heard about them.

"Well," I hesitated, "It wasn't me, not really. It was, but it wasn't. I was a woman with long black hair. Too bad it was to dark to see the man's face."

Naru shuffled through a small stack of papers before extracting one sheet. He held the paper in front of my face. "Were you this woman?" he asked.

The paper was actually a photo of a woman, two men, and a baby. They all looked extremely happy. The hot spring loomed behind them. Seeing the baby made something surface at the back of my mind. A dream that I had forgotten.

"Yeah, that's her. It's the same woman from the pond also," I said, grabbing the photo, "Where did you get this?"

"I had Yasu do some research while you were sleeping," Naru said, taking the picture and putting it back into the pile.

"How long was I asleep?" I asked appalled, "And what the hell is that smell? It's making me nauseous."

"Only about an hour," he said, looking over the sheets of paper again.

Yasu put a plate of gosh-knows-what under my nose. "Is this what you're smelling? I think it's delicious," he said with a grin.

A disgusted look crossed my face. I recoiled, shoving my nose into the folds of the back of Naru's shirt. "Get that crap away from me!" I shouted, letting it be muffled by the shirt.

Yasu grinned. His head got pushed away to be replaced by Ayako's holding a plate. "Mai, you should eat and then go to bed," she said.

"Okay," I complied, giggling at Naru's offended glare. I could almost hear the little speaker in his brain asking, "You'll listen to Ayako, but not your own fiancé? You stubborn little brat."

"Bipolar much?" I hear Masako ask in general. Everyone laughed as I blew a kiss as her.

"Love ya' too, Masako," I grinned.

**Hope you liked it! I thought this one was pretty funny! Review please!**


	20. Chapter 20: A Surprise

**So here's the chapter (hopefully) all of you have been waiting for! By the way, to answer one of the reviewers questions, yes, she does have bruises on her stomach, but nobodies seen them yet cause its under her shirt.**

**Disclaimer: I will never own Ghost Hunt *sob***

Chapter 20: A Surprise

Two mornings later, I was walking down the hall back toward base when I heard a girl cry, "Aw , damn it all! You guys should have brought something! You're all women! Or so I hope." A burst of laughter spilled into the hallway as she slid the door open, coming down the hall.

"Hey, you're one of the ghost hunters, right? That's so cool. Do you have any girly products that I could have? I really don't care what it is. I'll even pay you for them!" the girl asked with a huge smile.

I nodded, "Yeah, sure, right in here." We went into SPR's shared bedroom and got my backpack. "Here. I don't need money and I can always buy more. I haven't started my…" My voice trailed off as the realization struck.

"Uh, I have to go. I'll see you, maybe, later…um," I said, guiding us out the door.

"Julie," she supplied with another smile.

"Julie, I'll see you later," I said, closing the door and running off. I slammed the base door open, grabbing November's wrist.

She followed me willingly into a small bathroom. "Hey, what's up all of a sudden?"

"You have to help me!" I cried, beginning to ramble on so fast that I could barely understood my own words.

"Slow down, Mai. What are you talking about?" November asked, holding up her hands as if in defense.

I stopped and took a large, deep breath before saying, "I skipped my period. Help **me**."

She was quiet for about 20 minutes just staring at me. Then she was moving at warp speed. She dragged me mercilessly past base, only peaking in for a moment. "I'm taking Mai out!" she called before rushing off.

We caught the bus and road our way into town. There she drug me to a convenience store where I was shoved into a bathroom stall. Only five minutes later, she threw a little pink box over the door.

"Take one of theses and then come out," November called over.

I paled. Did she really believe…? Oh, what the crap. Better take it just to be sure.

While I waited for the little blue or red sign to turn up I thought of how it could have happened. It had only happened two times and the first had been before he left. So that meant it had to have been the day we had all gotten hammered. The celebration.

Crap. What the hell was I going to do on this case if I was…

A little red plus slowly materialized on the plastic face. Swallowing hard, I took another one and another one and one more just to be sure. All of them read positive.

I came out of the stall , hot tears stinging my eyes. The box hung limply in my hand while the four tests were clutched from my other.

I tossed them into the sink before wrapping my arms around November's torso. The tears flowed freely now, soaking her shirt. "What am I going to do? This case is so dangerous and I don't want to be sent home. What if something happens? More importantly, how am I going to tell him? How is he going to react?" I asked trying not to hiccup.

November didn't know how to answer any of my questions. Instead, she pulled me off of her to look at my face. Taking a handkerchief out of an invisible pocket. She dabbed at my face as she said, "It'll be alright. I'll bet you five of those delicious, what do you call them? Daifuku, I think, that the hot spring serves that he'll be over-joyed. Now stop those tears and we can grab some pastries to bring back. Then we'll go get some pie and ice cream at this really good diner down the street. I know how much of a sweet tooth you've had lately." She winked at me.

I nodded and laughed. "I'll bet he'll be stunned for awhile before he does anything. And then, we'll get angry at each other because he told me to go home," I predicted.

…..

"Where have you two been all this time?" Yasu asked accusingly as we walked through the door. November had a pink box balanced in her hands.

"Just for that you don't get any of these donuts," November scoffed.

Yasu came up to her and planted his lips on hers. She went red with embarrassment. "Who said I wasn't getting any again?" Yasu asked, the box in his hands.

Naru's eyes traveled to look at me as I laughed at the two. I could tell he was wondering what I'd been doing., but wouldn't voice it. He knew something was wrong and that I wasn't going to tell him till maybe later. "Hey, bucket of cold water, remember?" I told them, holding up some random bucket.

"Not cool, Mai. Not cool," Yasu said before laughing.

"No one ever said it had to be," I reasoned, shrugging my shoulders.

"It does in the rule book," Yasu said, holding up a little bucket with Yasu's writing on it. On the front it said, 'Yasu's Rule Book of Fairness.'

I grabbed the book and tossed it to Masako. I opened the book as it was tossed around to everyone, but Yasu. "What rule book?" I asked as it came back to me. I chucked it as hard as I could out of the open window.

"Nooooo!" Yasu cried dramatically, fake fainting. We all laughed.

**Hope you liked how Mai found out about her little package. Before you ask, yes, Naru will find out about Mai's pregnancy in the next chapter. Look forward to it ;P Review please!**


	21. Chapter 21: Finding Out

**Here's the next chapter. Everyone finally finds out about Mai's **_**condition**_**. Next chapter will be their reactions. I can't even wait myself to write it. Anyone ever watch Code Geass? I'm literally watching it right now for like the 3 time, lol. I might start a fanfic for that one too**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ghost Hunt and never will**

Chapter 21: Finding Out

Mai's POV:

I sighed, flipping back my blankets and getting up. Moonlight shone brightly through the window, illuminating the sleeping faces around me. The only one I couldn't find was Naru.

"Maybe a bath will make me feel better, but first, I have to pee," I thought to myself as I gathered my bath materials.

The halls were silent and dark at four in the morning as I made my way over to base. Why-you may ask- am I up as the ghastly hour of four in the morning?

That's an easy one to answer. It's because lately, my sleeping pattern has gone even more screwy then it had been before. Thanks for the pregnancy oh narcissistic fiancé of mine.

In base, Naru had fallen asleep on his keyboard for the third night in a row. I set my items down quietly and draped a blanket over his shoulders. Naru's a relatively quiet sleeper, but he has a nasty habit of drooling in his sleep. Seriously, I'm surprise that his keyboard hasn't fried yet.

If you don't sleep in the same room as him, you would never expect him to drool in his sleep. What with his holier-then-thou attitude. He also talks in his sleep, something I was quick to pick up on. I've already collected some interesting little tidbits of information from these little blips. Like the "bug-man" thing.

Before I could resist the impulse, I reached out a hand and moved the hair out of his eyes. He groaned causing me to freeze. "Mai, don't leave with that…" he muttered, the last word left off as he smirked.

A grin broke across my face. Nice to know that he even worries about me in his dreams. Quickly, I leaned forward and kissed his forehead. "I'm not going anywhere, silly," I whispered.

A small smile graced his lips. I gathered my things and hurried out the door before he made me do something more drastic. Hey, I may be 21-years-old, but that doesn't mean hormones don't still effect me.

In the bathroom, I stripped quickly. It was exceedingly hot, steam gathering around me like a hot, humid blanket. Out in the hot spring, steam coiled readily off of the smooth water.

The heat of the water soothed the ache where the bruise on my abdomen shone proud and purple. The bruise I had gracefully received from that damned dream. Thankfully, the ones on my wrists were already fading into that sickly yellow color.

I relaxed in the heat, sinking deeper into the water. Suddenly, without the slightest warning, an icy voice whispered beside me, "If its not mine, then you can't have it," before I was shoved forcefully under the water.

Struggling against unseen hands, I forced my head above water. I called for help, but that was soon cut off by a mouthful of water. On my way down for the second time I struck my head on a rock. For some reason, I always seem to hit my head, but this time had been the hardest.

My world slowly reduced to black until only a small pinprick of light shone. When that small piece of light had faded and I was ready to succumb to the darkness, strong arms shot around me, dragging me onto the cool rocks.

I couldn't breath. The water still filled my lungs. Hot air was forced into my lungs. Someone breathed sticky carbon dioxide into my mouth over and over, refilling my waterlogged lungs in an effort to dispel the water.

Water finally choked past my lips, spurting out. I turned over, coughing violently. Tears streamed down my face in answer to the pain that filled my lungs in absence of the water and clenched around the bruise in my stomach as the muscles contracted.

"You're alright. You're alive. Everything is fine," the male voice whispered in what sounded like an attempt to convince himself more then me.

Through the tears I could make out the black hair and clothes of my workaholic fiancé. He held me tightly to him.

It didn't matter to me that I was basically providing crappy porn for the audience at the door. All that mattered to me was my closest scrape to death since beginning at SPR and Naru.

"I'll call an ambulance!" someone unfamiliar called from the doorway.

…..

Later, in the hospital, I was laying there just staring at the ceiling with a boredom usually reserved for classes as Naru spoke with the doctor outside my door. They were speaking in whispers, but none to quietly. It's like they thought I was half deaf and couldn't hear them or something.

"She's fine with only a slight concussion. We're just thankful that the lack of oxygen and the wound to hear abdomen had no effect on the fetus," the doctor said quietly.

Naru stared at the doctor with wide eyes. "The fetus? She's pregnant?" His voice seemed to convey more of a 'What the hell? How did I not notice?' feeling to it.

I squeezed my eyes shut as tears welled up in my eyes again. That isn't the way I wanted him to find out. I wanted to tell him myself once this case was over and done with.

"Yes, about a month along. More like a little past a month. We're almost done with everything to ensure that the fetus is completely healthy and unharmed. You may take her home if you'd like and we'll mail you the results. A nurse will be up soon. Oh, and congratulations, bucko. Have fun dealing with the hormones," the doctor said, clapping Naru on the back. I could hear the grin in her voice and her footsteps as she took her leave.

Naru made a half choked sound. He softly made his way over to my bed. I kept my eyes trained on the ceiling, not wanting to see his reaction to the news.

His hand raised and moved the hair out of my face. It lingered against my face for a few seconds before moving to take my hand.

Finally, I mustered up the ovaries to look at him. Our eyes locked and I could tell he was stunned out of his wits. "I should take you off the case," he murmured to himself more them me.

Okay, time to drop the quiet girl act. "No! Absolutely not! I refuse to be kicked off the case!" I shouted, sitting up quickly in bed. The fierceness of my shout was marred greatly by the fact that it came out in a hoarse, raspy whisper. "Ouch!" I groaned, clutching at my now aching throat.

"It's not smart for a person who has just recently nearly been drowned to yell at their almost spouse," Naru said with a blank expression even though his tone said different as he handed me a cup of water.

The nurse entered ten, grinning at us. "So lively for just waking up. Alright, you're free to go home," she said, still smiling at Naru as she detached everything from me. It made me uneasy that she only stared at Naru while she did this.

"Which is exactly where you'll be going," he said, helping me out of bed.

"No, I won't!" I shouted, my voice coming back with a vengeance as we set foot outside, "I am going back to the hot spring and helping you finish the case, Kazuya Shibuya! I will not be left at home to overdose on sugar because your baby has a sweet tooth while you're off having a good old time hunting some psycho ghost!"

He rolled his eyes toward the sky. "Yes, you re going back to the hot spring," he said making me brighten instantly, "but only to pack up your stuff." My face fell and he took his chance to pull me into the taxi.

I grumbled to myself all the way back to the hot spring, trying to come up with my next motive of attack. Several times I opened my mouth, but shut it, thinking better then to spout that information. Finally, I settled for just asking, "At least explain to my why you refuse to allow me to continue on this case."

He stopped outside the base door, swiveling to face me so fast that I nearly crashed into him. "It's because you're pregnant," he said exasperatedly, "And you're overly prone to attract every form of danger. You are going home. End of discussion."

He spun back around, flinging the door open. The whole SPR team stared at us. Even Lin stared. Monk's eyes were bugging out of his head, Ayako looked like she was about to faint, and Yasu, November and Masako were holding back giggles. Apparently, we hadn't been talking as quietly as we had originally thought.

**I hope you like this chapter. I wrote it at three this morning so that might contribute greatly to the difference in writing style of this chapter. Anyway, I liked writing this chapter, it was interesting. Review for the baby! :D**


	22. Chapter 22: Reactions

**So, I realize that I said Mai was 21-years-old in the last chapter, but she's only 20. Haha, 1 year younger then Naru in this fic though she's actually 2 years in the manga, sorry for that little slip on mine**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ghost Hunt**

Chapter 22: Reactions

Mai's POV:

Without even a simple glance towards his team, Naru stalked back over to the monitors. Vibes of anger rolled off him in potent waves. Even the stoic Lin backed a couple steps away.

Huffing, I traipsed across the room, landing hard on the couch. He was being so childish. The team was still staring at us, their eyes flicking quickly between us. "What?" I snapped.

Masako, Ayako and November all looked at each other with varying expressions. They grabbed my arms and dragged me out of base. In the bedroom, they threw me on a stack of folded futons.

"Hey, what are you guys doing?" I cried, almost falling sideways onto the floor.

"How did he find out? How did he react? Was he overjoyed?" November began asking, spouting off question after question without even the in-cling to stop and take a breath. When she was gasping for air Masako took over.

"When did it happen?" was Masako's only question.

Ayako just simply pointed her finger at me and commanded, "Speak."

So I spoke. It's not like I had much to say. I told them everything from the moment I had woken early this morning. They really didn't need to know anything more then that. The rest -I hoped- they could guess the rest.

"So, who is the father?" Ayako asked. Scratch that last sentence. They're not going to be able to guess the rest.

We all stared at her incredulously. "Are you stupid or just incredibly unobservant?" I asked, holding up my left hand and wiggling my ring finger, "I've only been dating him for what, several years before he left and three months now."

"Oh, Naru. Monk isn't going to like this," she said, scratching the back of her head.

"I have to give up five of those delicious pastries now, damn it," November whined, sitting down on the floor Indian style even in her dress.

"Mai's pregnant and all you can think about is owing her some pastries?" Masako asked. I highly doubted that Masako liked November's laid back attitude that she had all the time, but I could have been wrong.

"I already knew Mai was pregnant," she said.

Before Masako could open her mouth to make a snide remark, Ayako interjected. "So when did it happen? It had to have been somewhere around a month ago, but you guys have been jumping each other like bunnies ever since he came back so it's a little vague," Ayako said shamelessly with a shrug.

"No, we haven't!" I cried in outrage.

"Everybody else seems to think so. Except, maybe, John," November supplied, wagging her finger at me.

I pushed her hand out of my face. "Only Naru and I know what go on in our bedroom, not you guys. So keep your nose out of our sex life," I grumbled, even though I wasn't quite happy with my pitiful sex life either, but that's what happens when you're falling asleep every thirty minutes. Oh well, say la vie.

"Whatever, then you must know the exact day then," Ayako said with a sly grin.

A scarlet blush slowly crawled its way up my neck. Soon, my face was burning. The three stared at me expectantly, waiting for an answer. They were shameless! What is it with every woman besides me wanting to know what happens in everyone's bedrooms?

"The night of the celebration party," I whispered under my breath.

"Huh? I didn't quite catch that," Ayako said causing all three of their smiles to grow larger.

"Ah! The night of the celebration party! There, I said it! Happy now?" I cried, jumping up, "What is with you people?"

"Ooooh, so that's why you were all soar and what not," Masako said, nodding her head. She ran her hand over her distended stomach as the baby pushed against it, causing its foot to show.

I grinned and sighed. "You're so lucky. I can't wait until I'll be able to feel mine kick," I said, smiling as the baby kicked at the hand I had placed on her stomach.

There was a loud thud from outside that were followed by two louder ones. Scuffling echoed from behind the door and then running footsteps.

I scrambled to my feet, flinging the door aside just in time to see the figures disappearing down the hall. I pursed my lips to the side and looked over my shoulder. "Do you think they'll try to threaten Naru?" I asked.

"I think they'll end up tied up in a corner," November said, waving her hand.

"They'll probably end up hanging upside down from the roof," Ayako said, grinning.

"You're both thinking too little. With his mood? They'll end up hanging upside down, from their toenails, in the middle of the desert, on the hottest day of the year, just far enough away from a bowl of water that they can't drink any," Masako said, hands on hips.

I laughed. "Yasu might get away though," I said with a grin, "I'll go check anyway."

I jumped almost to the ceiling as I came out to find the hostess staring at me. She had a glazed, faraway gaze as she said with drawn out words, "Congratulations, Miss Taniyama."

"Um, thank you. Uh, I have to, um, get going," I said, trotting backwards down the hall, watching her. She waved her hand at me, a creepy smile stretching her lips.

When I cleared the corner I started running to base. "Mai, I want you to take extreme care to be careful around the hostess," Naru said the moment I stumbled through the door.

In a corner, Yasu and Monk struggled against bonds while John just stood there chuckling. Naru had even taken the time to gag them. If he got the chance, I'd bet he'd finish both Ayako's and Masako's wagers.

Lin, on the other hand, was no where to be found. He was probably off calling Madoka to tell her I was pregnant, who would then call Lluela, who would then both call me. After a three hour talk, they would trace my cell phone signal and then kidnap me. And everybody would be none-the-wiser.

"And be careful if you see my mother and Madoka," Naru said, as if he read my mind, "I don't need you getting kidnapped."

I laughed. "I won't," I said, standing on tippy-toes so I could give him a kiss on the cheek.

…..

"_How could you?" a man's voice whispered sadly in my ear with only the slightest hint of anger._

_My eyes shot open. I stared into the blackness of forever, the only light being emitted from me, myself and my unborn baby._

_It was one of those dreams. That meant that Gene should be… His hand stretched down next to me, offering. I took it. He pulled me off the ground with ease, like he was lifting a kitten and not a full grown human woman. "Hey Gene, what are you showing me today?" I asked with a smile._

"_Mai, you're too carefree. You have to be more careful then usual on this case," Gene suddenly said, gripping my hand and staring at me intently._

_I didn't quite comprehend what he meant by 'more than usual.' "Why?" I asked._

"_Because of this," he said, placing tentative fingers on my stomach, "He, she or both will attract them."_

"_Okay, but how is that any different then normal?" I questioned, starting to feel concerned, but trying to make it less tense by turning it into a joke._

"_Mai, this is no laughing matter. One will do anything to obtain the baby and the other wants it dead," Gene said sternly, "And this time, one has a vessel. I don't want you, Noll or your guys' child harmed."_

_I smashed all humor I had on the subject and swept them into a locked box. "How can we finish this case before something else happens?" I asked, but Gene was fading for some reason. A scene of memory was taking his place._

"_Times up. Tell Naru that I said that either you stay there with him or he goes home with you. Stay by his side at all times, Mai," he called before he was gone in a flash of light._

_The scene materialized in front of me. A woman, the woman with black hair, and presumably her husband, were standing in the woman's hot spring. They seemed to be arguing and also seemed to be fighting over the baby. At the moment, her husband was winning._

"_You went off and had the baby!" he screamed, ripping the baby out of her hands. He wailed miserably at the top of his little lungs._

"_But, he's your's! You can't do anything to him! Please!" she screamed back, reaching for the child._

"_No, he's not! He is Yoichi's son! He looks exactly like him! I can't believe you would do this!" he shouted, pushing the woman to the ground and beginning to drown the child in the spring._

…..

"How could you?" I shouted, flinging myself almost off the couch. I gagged, the bright lights making me even more nauseous then I already was. "Oh crap, I have to puke," I growled, running to the bedroom and into the bathroom.

**I hoped you liked it! :D This one was just…well I thought it was hilarious. Suggestion for baby names for Masako's baby and Mai's baby are both welcome**


	23. Chapter 23: A Pedowhat?

**I'm sorry if this chapter is a bit…creepy. I had fun writing it -even though it kind of made me feel like a perv*sigh*-, but honestly, I probably shouldn't be writing these chapters while listening to Anita Blake books. If you've read some of them, you'll understand why I shouldn't after you read this. Anyway, this is the end of the 3****rd**** case, hope you like it.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing to do with Ghost Hunt**

Chapter 23: A Pedo-what?

Mai's POV:

Naru followed close behind me and held my hair out of my face. "Oh, you are so gonna get it over the next eight months," I growled after I had finished having, "Just you wait. I'm going to make your life hell."

Naru chuckled. "I'm sure you will," he said, rubbing my back gentle.

I spat into the toilet, flushed and then got to brushing my teeth. Back in the base, I noticed how little people were here. "Where is everyone?" I asked, sitting down on Naru's lap in front of the monitors.

"Bath," he answered simply, scratching my back between my shoulder blades.

I purred and curled my shoulders like a cat. Getting your back scratched by the person who knew exactly where to scratch was the best thing ever. We sat like that for several minutes until I finally remembered what I was supposed to tell Naru.

"Oh!" I cried, spinning around so fast that our chair toppled over. I sat on top of Naru's chest, telling him what I needed. "I had a dream. The man drowned the baby the woman was holding in the photo. Gene told me that one ghost wants our baby and the other one wants it dead and that one has a vessel. He also told me to tell you that either I stay here with you or you have to come back with me." Out of breath now, I took a deep breath.

"Gene would say that," Naru said with a grin, sitting up, "Okay, you can stay, but you have to promise not to leave my side. I don't want anything happening to you or the little one." He placed his hands on my hips and kissed my stomach.

"Now who's threatening with a cold bucket of water?" Yasu asked, standing in the doorway like a disapproving mother duck.

"You, obviously," Naru said patronizingly, pulling my lips to his.

Yasu bristled with his mother duckling impersonation. Just as he was walking in November grabbed his arm and turned him towards her. She pressed her lips sweetly to his with a knowing smile.

I chuckled into Naru's mouth and gave November a thumbs up over his shoulder. She repeated the gesture at me over Yasu's shoulder.

Naru and I broke apart quickly, per usual, but it was a long time before November and Yasu broke apart. She jumped and screamed. "Oh my god! You really need to stop that!" November screamed at the hostess.

She stood outside the door, staring at me with that glazed over gaze. "I'm sorry for…frightening you, Miss Phantomhive."

"I'm sure you are," Masako said sarcastically, stepping around her even with her oversized tummy.

"Mr. Shibuya, the food is ready in your room," she said breathily.

At that moment, the rest of SPR trudged through the door. "I'll watch the monitors," Lin offered, offering me his hands. I took them and he hoisted me up before I stepped on Naru's feet and pulled him up like I do with my classmates in gym.

Naru nodded to Lin, and then we left Lin to guard out little base.

…..

There was a skittering sound, like someone shuffling across tile or hardwood floors in socks. Then there was the clink of metal against metal. I opened my eyes, but all I could see was blackness.

When I moved, I wasn't able to. The bond of the ropes were so tight that they were beginning to give me rope burn as I struggled against them. Cool fingers tenderly touched the flesh of my exposed stomach. Something cold and metallic feeling trailed up the skin of my torso.

"Oh, Miss Taniyama," the voice of the hostess said with the hint of another woman's voice hidden under it, "Please stop struggling so much. You might harm the baby, but don't worry, it'll be mine soon enough."

I tried to scream no as I hear the _tink tink_ of someone flicking a syringe. Someone had gagged me though, restricting my flow of words to feral noises. Wow, this was really really pissing me off. Who was she to try and steal my baby from me? What was she gonna do with it anyway? Put it in a test tube? Or maybe put it in herself? Ugh!

"Oh, missy wants to say some last words. What may they be?" she asked, the cold voice of the other woman coming out.

She gently pulled the cloth away from mouth and then placing a finger on my lower lip. She was so cocky that I could feel it. She slipped the finger in my mouth and I bit down hard.

The metallic taste of blood filled my mouth. Her scream was animalistic as she slashed at my face. Seriously, who was she? The fricken' rapist from a mystery/thriller novel? Though the scream had been loud enough for the both of us. The team would have heard her screaming.

A door somewhere behind me burst open. "Subdue her!" Naru ordered, reaching me easily. He cut the ropes away. When he had ripped off the blindfold I looked down at me to see why it had been so damn drafty.

The woman had dressed me in a type of dress with the middle missing. The waist of the skirt hug low on my hips and it's hemline draped just below my crotch. The top was more like a bra then a shirt except without the traditional clasp. In its place was a silver zipper. All of it was frilly to the fourth degree.

"What the crap? Does she like dressing up her victims before dissecting them?" I cried, folding a nearby blanket around me, "Fucking sicko!"

"I told you. She's a lesbian cougar," Yasu said matter-of-factly. The only thing was, this time I believed him.

Within ten minutes and with a few scratches, and the boys had subdued the big bad baby stealing pedophile. She snarled, struggling against her bonds. If I wasn't staring right at her I would have sworn that she was a rabies toting dog.

"John, begin," Naru said, stepping back from her and towards me.

John nodded and began his exorcism. She screamed again, gurgling. She thrashed and writhed. We were going to attract some attention. The room shook violently and the sharp instruments floated menacingly.

Suddenly, they all dropped to the floor with a clatter. The room went still. Our hostess slumped to the floor, unconscious, giving Masako the chance she needed to check.

She hurried over to her, placing hesitant fingertips on her back. "The spirit is gone, but the man's still lurks," she said, retreating from the hostess quickly.

"Then let's get him gone!" Monk cried, "I'll go exorcise the bathroom since that seems to be the focal point."

Before waiting for Naru's agreement he ran off. Wow, he really wanted out of here. I guess he wasn't the only one antsy to get me away from the creepy pedobear hostess. Though, I do believe, that some of that was the ghosts fault. Some.

…..

"Naru, the paperwork is finished," I said, coming into Naru's office with a stack of papers in my hands. I dropped it down on his desk with a loud thud and rolled my shoulders. He set his own pen down, stretching himself.

"Then it's all done. Thank you for the help," he said, kissing my temple as he stood.

"You thank me for helping with paperwork, but not for making you tea all the time?" I asked, pouting.

"It's just too good for thanks," he said, kissing my temple again.

I giggled. "Okay, good enough," I said, grinning and touching my lips to his.

The blissful silence was shattered by the front door slamming open. "Mai, Oliver, where are you my darlings?" we heard Lluela shout causing us to break apart with twin sighs.

"You can't hide from us forever!" Madoka called shortly after Lluela, loudly.

So they had skipped the whole phone tree thing. They had immediately veered towards Naru's office where they found us. I was sitting on Naru's lap, playing with the pen on his desk.

"Congratulations!" they cried together, enveloping us both in a group hug, "We have to go baby shopping! And we still have to plan the wedding and now a baby shower! So much to do!"

I looked over my shoulder at Naru. We sighed in unison and grinned at each other. Somehow, even all through Lluela's and Madoka's attack, I had stayed pressed to Naru's chest. His hands were resting on my stomach with my hands resting over his.

**And that's a wrap for this case, hope you liked it! Sorry that it might have been a bit rushed, though it could have been worse.**

**So anyway, I was wondering if you guys would like another fanfic. You can pick which anime. I have ideas for a Gakuen Alice, Seikon no Qwaser, Code Gease, Millennium Snow, Harry Potter, or another Ghost Hunt fanfic. Choose which one you guys want and I'll get to work on it :D**

**Suggestions for baby names are welcome, review please!**


	24. Chapter 24: Worrying

**Okay, so for Mai and Naru's wedding, would Mai take up the last name Shibuya or Davis? Or both? Your opinions are welcome.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ghost Hunt**

Chapter 24: Worrying

Mai's POV:

"Naru?" I asked, leaning heavily on Naru. We were sitting on the couch, the tv screen flickering with a kiddy movie that I had taken a liking to recently.

"Hm?" he murmured, running his fingers through my hair.

"When are you going to officially move into my house?" I asked, listening to his heart beat as I watched the dragons on the screen. I had the sudden urge to want to train my own dragon. That would be something to see.

Naru looked down at me with questioning eyes. "Why the sudden question?" he asked.

"Because Lin and Madoka have taken over your's and Lin's apartment. Plus, you sleep here every night. The only thing left to do is move your stuff over here," I said with a smile, then laughed, "And you've high jacked my bedroom. All my bed clothes have gone from sunshine yellow to black."

He chuckled. "Sorry about that. You can turn them pink if you like, even though the shade of pink is disgusting."

"Really? How do you do that?" I asked excitedly, pushing myself up on my arms to look into his face.

"By spilling bleach on it. Please, don't do it. I beg of you," he said with a Naru-like smile.

Vibrations rolled their way down our legs. I raised an eyebrow at him, about to make a naughty comment when he pulled his cell phone out of his pocket. I sighed, my head dropping back onto his chest as he answered quickly.

"Hello?" he asked.

"We'll be there in twenty minutes," he said, turning the phone off. He curled around me with a long winded sigh, hugging me to him and groaned.

"What?" I asked, trying not to topple us over as I tried to look at his face.

"There's a client waiting for us. You have promise me that when you reach your third trimester you won't go on any other cases until after you give birth," he said, still curled around me. For some reason it felt like he may fall asleep at anytime.

"Okay, but you have to stay with me, that means no cases for three months," I said, with a grin, kissing the exposed flesh of his neck. A shiver ran up his spine and I grinned, my lips still pressed against his throat.

He smiled, uncurling himself from around me. "That is perfectly fine with me, but you should get going before you give me a hickey. That would give the client a bad impression," he told me, "You know, you remind me of Gene."

"How?" I asked, pulling on a skirt under my long night shirt and then changing out of that.

"Sometimes, you both can be complete and utter perverts," he said, buttoning up his shirt.

"You know, he's the one who told me what kind of underwear you liked the most," I said, grinning over my shoulder at him.

His eyebrows shot together. "When?" he asked.

"The year before we began dating," I answered, giggling in that back of my throat, remembering that years Christmas present to him.

"So that's why you…" he began before I dragged him out the door.

…..

We walked into the office exactly twenty minutes later. On the couch, a nervous looking woman was ringing the hem of her skirt between her clenched fists. Her knuckles were white with the strength of her fists.

I veered toward the kitchenette, making one of the more calming teas that we had stashed away in the cupboards. Hopefully, this would also keep my over-zealous fiancé from scaring the scared client.

"Miss, would you like some tea?" I asked, setting the silver tray down on the coffee table.

"Um, yes, please, but I have to leave soon. I have children to look after and in that place…well, I don't feel comfortable leaving them," she said, almost spilling the tea as she took one of the porcelain teacups.

"Well then, by all means, please state the reason for disturbing my day off," Naru said a little too coldly, taking his own tea cup.

A quick biff to the back of the head and the almost destruction of all his notes cured that behavior in a jiffy. "I'm sorry for his behavior. He's a bit irritable," I said with a smile, "Now, what troubles are you having?"

Her bottom lip began to quiver as she began speaking. "I run a small orphanage out in Hokkaido. My kids, well they've been disappearing into thin air. One minute they'll be there and the next they'll be gone. A month ago I was supporting around 100 kids and now there are 50 left."

Silent tears slid down her face as she said the next words. "The other kids have found fifteen of the missing ones already."

"Then there is no problem," Naru said with some hesitancy.

"Mr. Shibuya, you don't understand. Those fifteen were found dead in the lavender fields behind the orphanage and always in the same spot. We never have visitors and we're too far away from the road for casual passers-by," she said, her voice thick with the effect to not sob.

My hands had already traveled to my mouth. Fifteen children. All dead. Just like that. Who would…who could…? They were so young.

Naru looked at me from the corner of his eye. "We'll take the case. Expect us within two days," he said.

"Hurry back to your children. Make sure they're safe," I said quickly, nearly begging even though she didn't need that, but an extra push is always good for the morale.

"Y-yes, I will. Thank you. Thank you so much!" she stuttered, scrubbing at her eyes and standing up quickly. The door was slamming behind her before we could even utter a simple, "You're welcome."

Naru watched me cautiously as my eyes stayed wide, hand over my mouth and staring at the floor. When his hands made contact with my arms, the tears in my eyes spilled over. I guess just a comforting hand wasn't enough.

He led me into his office, wrapping his arm protectively around me. I pressed my face into his chest, letting the sobs leak out as he asked, "What's the matter?"

"All those children. Fifteen. Just snuffed out like that. They didn't even have a chance to live. Who could do something like that to children? What if that…because of me…to our…?" I couldn't make a coherent question.

"Nothing is going to happen to our child," Naru said soothingly, trying to calm me.

I looked at him, his face blurred by the tears. "What if she or he attracts spirits like me? Or has PK like you? Or has the kind of dreams I do? I don't want him or her to see what I do. I don't want them to get her because of us!" I cried, burying my face in is shirt again.

"We'll get though it," Naru said, hugging me tighter and kissing my forehead.

"Gene said that he or she would attract them. He or she is already like me," I mumbled into the cloth of his shirt.

"Only the attraction part. That doesn't mean that they are going to have my PK or your dreams," he told me, running his hand through my hair.

The door to Naru's office slammed open. The large part of SPR poured in including Madoka and Lluela. "We're going for your final fitting! For Mai's dress and Naru's tux!" all the girl's cried, getting ready to grab for Mai.

A glare from my red and swollen eyes, and from Naru caused most of them to stop. Except for Madoka and Lluela.

"We have a case," Naru said before they could get my arms.

"And it's our day off, plus I have to call our doctor," I said instantly.

"You can do that on the way and this won't take more than two hours. You'll be fine," they said, grabbing me and Naru together. We were easily dragged out of the office by the large group. There goes our day off.

**Okay, so I've got the votes so far on the fanfic I'm thinking about starting.**

**Ghost Hunt - 4**

**Code Geass - 1**

**Gakuen Alice - 1**

**Seikon no Qwaser - 0**

**Millennium Snow - 0**

**Harry Potter - 0**

**I've also got another choice being the show Bones, the voting is still open so comment and tell me which one you'd like the most. Suggestion names for the baby is still open :D**


	25. Chapter 25: Consolation

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naru or Yasu or Monk or the little ball of fiery named Mai**

Chapter 25: Consolation

Mai's POV:

"I feel like a Barbie doll," I told Naru while we were in the van on the way to Hokkaido.

"And I feel like a Ken doll, so I guess that makes us even," he said with a smile, only small enough for me to see.

I grinned. "Aren't we supposed to be the ones to put together the wedding? They're not even allowing us to do anything! They've only been making us pick things out of the stuff they've decided that we might like. The other day, did they tie your hands behind your back and do the fitting?" I asked, glaring over my shoulder at Ayako.

She grinned back as Naru answered, "Yes, they did. They even tied my feet together." He glared back over his shoulder at Monk and Yasu. Yasu poked his head between Lin's and mine.

"Aw, come on you guys. We just want to see what you guys look like naked before we never get the chance again," he whined, grinning at us.

"Oh my good lord, Yasu! You pervert!" I cried, following him into the back as he backed away. A deep was covering my face. I was leaning over top of him with my fist raised when my phone started ringing.

Why do I always get calls when I'm on my way to cases?

Monk plucked the cell phone out of my skirt pocket, sliding it open. Yasu restrained me as Monk pressed the phone to his ear. "Hello?" he asked in horrible English. I hope he doesn't saying anything further then hello.

"No speak Japanese," he answered whoever was on the other line. His English was so painfully horrible that I cringed at its sound.

"Monk, give me my phone!" I screamed, but Yasu still had my arms. I kicked around wildly.

I kicked my leg out to the side, nailing Monk. Good thing he already had a son. He dropped the phone to the floor with a groan. "Yasu, if you ever want to have children you'll let me go," I threatened dangerously.

He gave me an impish grin. "No need."

I stared at him incredulously. "Then think about November. Don't you think she'll want to have a baby someday?" I asked, raising my eyebrows at him.

"Why do you think she decided to not come on this case and stay home? She didn't just spontaneously get bored with us," he asked, grin still plastered on his face. There was a long silence.

My jaw dropped. "What the hell, Yasu? You two are worse then Naru and me! At least we had been dating for several years prior! You just started dating two months ago!" I cried before elbowing him in the crotch, "Oh, congratulations on the pregnancy by the way."

Yasu let me go, curling in on himself. I snatched up my phone from the floor and scrambled over the seat to plop back down between Naru and Lin. "Hello?" I asked quickly, pressing the phone to my ear.

"Darling," my editors voice said through the phone, "Why is it that I always call in the middle of the weirdest conversations?" Naru's neck nearly snapped as his head swiveled around to glare at the phone I held because my editor sounds like the manly man that her husband will never be.

"Why do you keep calling when I'm on my way to cases?" I countered, twisting a lock of hair around my finger, "Was there going to be a specific reason to this call?"

"Well, anyway, where are you?" she asked curtly, ignoring my questions altogether.

"Heading to Hokkaido for a case," I said, my voice sounding bored.

There was silence and then she burst out in laughter. "Oh, that's perfect! There's an interview up there for you!" She rattled of an address. I repeated it quickly, pointedly looking at Naru who scrawled it down. "See you there in a week!"

"What? No! I'm on a case!" I cried as the line went dead. I slid my phone shut and glared at it. "I swear, it's like talking to a brick wall. I hate my publisher at this moment in time."

"Serves you right!" Yasu and Monk gasped painfully from the back.

…..

Konoka Shimizu-the woman who had come to our office two days ago-stood in front of a large, old structure. A house, I presumed. It wasn't as big as the Phantomhive Manor, but for a house it was big.

I guess you need a large house when supporting 100 kids.

"Miss Shimizu, has everything been fine?" I asked as Naru and I walked up. Her face was solemn and she was holding a sobbing child against her shoulder. "Why is this little one crying?" I asked, rubbing the little girl's back, feeling the hitching sobs.

Konoka looked at me sadly. "Her twin brother disappeared this morning," she said, passing me the small child as she reached her arms out for me.

I cradled her against my shoulder like Konoka had been doing, still rubbing her back. "Please, onee-san, save my brother," the little girl sobbed into my shirt.

I turned to Naru with pleading eyes. He came up behind me and smoothed the hair back from her red face. "I promise we will get your twin back to you. It's all going to be fine," he said with a soothing tone.

"See, it's going to be fine. How 'bout you be a big girl and stop crying for your brother? I'm sure he'd be sad to know that you were crying would he?" I asked her sweetly.

She shook her head. Slowly, her sobs turned to hiccups. "That's a good girl. Everything is going to be alright. Onee-san and onii-san pinky promise," I told her with my trademark smile.

"Pinky promise?" she asked a little doubtfully, leaning back in my arms with her pinky outstretched.

"Pinky promise," Naru and I said in unison, hooking our pinkies around her's. The rest of the group finally reached us, carrying boxes and monitors as I set the girl down.

"I love you, onee-san, onii-san! Thank you!" she cried, wrapping her arms around our legs.

"What just happened?" Yasu asked, perplexed like the rest of the SPR team. Naru had his mask back in place so I doubted they would ever find out.

Konoka laughed a little. "Thank you, Mr. Shibuya, Ms. Taniyama. Your base is this way," she said and led the way into the house with Naru and me playing a three-legged walk as the little girl kept us connected hip-to-hip.

**Hope you enjoyed this chapter! I wrote it while camping so that's why it took me so long to get this one up. Here are the results so far for the next fanfic I'm going to write:**

**Ghost Hunt - 6**

**Code Geass - 1**

**Gakuen Alice - 3**

**Seikon no Qwaser - 1**

**Millennium Snow - 0**

**Harry Potter - 1**

**If you haven't voted yet then get to it! :D Next chapter I'll be announcing which order I'll be writing them in. Review please! It boosts my confidence! And thanks to all of you who have reviewed!**


	26. Chapter 26: A Body

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ghost Hunt**

**And here's a message from our dear heroine, Mai: Stay tuned and read the ending author's note to find out what Sapphire will be writing next. First chapter for it should be up in a couple days. ;D**

Chapter 26: A Body

Mai's POV:

"Onee-san, onii-san, come here. Come here! We want to play with you in the field! Konoka said we could play until the sun goes down!" several smaller kids shouted as they tried to drag Naru and me from base. A group of older and younger kids stood outside the door, looking in with anticipation.

"I'm sorry, onee-san and onii-san are working. We have to set everything up so that we can try and get your friends back," I said sweetly, only letting them drag me a little out the door.

"But can't your friends do that?" they pleaded, straining harder to pull us.

We looked back at they group who shrugged and nodded their heads. " Yasu, after set-up…" Naru began and Yasu finished for him.

"Go do research on the house and its occupants. I got it boss!"

Ayako and Masako spoke up next. "Go take temperature readings of every room in the house and see if we can sense any spirits."

John and Monk were last to reply. "Go set up the cameras and microphones."

"And that leaves me to play babysitter," Lin said. Mizuki sat in his carrier , making bubbles at random people. Jamie sat at the low coffee table scribbling in a coloring book.

"I would pay money to immortalize that in a photo," everyone thought at the same time.

Naru nodded. The kiddies squealed their delight, pulling us out into the huge lavender garden. "Let's play hide-n-seek! Let's play hide-n-seek!" they chanted, jumping up and down.

"Okay, then you guys go hide and we'll count to 100. We'll even close our eyes," I said with a big smile.

"Okay!" they all cried.

"Alright then, here we go. One…" I began, putting my hand over my eyes as Naru did the same.

"Two…" he said shortly after me causing the kids to scatter.

"Three…" I said next. From the depths of the field, a piercing scream echoed to us. We took off in the direction of the screaming. It was one of the little boys who had drug us out of base earlier. When I saw what had made the boy scream in the first place I nearly screamed myself along with the rest of the younger kids.

Naru picked up the screaming boy. The older children, mostly the teens, picked up the other screaming children and I picked up the girl who I'd been holding earlier. We hurried them back to the house where the rest of the team and Konoka met us.

"What happened?" Monk shouted, leading the pack.

"Monk, go find a sheet," Naru ordered, handing over the children. He gave Lin a look that made him pick up Jamie and taking him back to base.

Once the children were all handed off, we booked it back over to the body. It was torn and bloodied, not looking much like anything anymore. Its face was torn to shreds and its clothes looked even worse. I almost gagged just looking at the rest of it.

Konoka sprinted up behind us, holding up her skirts for more leg room. "Miss Shimizu, can you identify this child?" Naru asked, doubt evident in his voice.

"Y-yes," she sobbed, her hand over her mouth, "That's Mathew. He was only thirteen. A couple was just planning to adopt him."

"I'm so sorry," I told her, rubbing her back.

Monk ran up with a white sheet draped across his arms. "I brought the sheet Naru," he said. He back pedaled a couple steps when he saw Mathew.

"Thank you, Monk," I said, taking the sheet and covering the body with it. "I'm so sorry you never got to live your life. May you rest in peace," I whispered.

Naru watched me silently before we headed back to the house with Konoka and Monk. "When this happens, do you call the police?" he asked.

"No, we burry them in the cemetery on the side of the house," she hiccupped, pointing towards a rusted, wrought iron gate.

"We'll help," I told her.

…..

"Yasu, what did you find?" Naru asked hours later when we were all sitting around base. It had taken an hour to relatively calm everyone down. Then it had taken another two hours to dig the grave. It took an hour to move Mathew, an hour for his make shift service and one more hour to bury him. Over all it had taken six hours.

It was somewhere around one in the morning and I did not fancy listening to Yasu spout facts at us.

He rubbed his eyes tiredly. Good to know that I wasn't the only one feeling the affects of sleep deprivation. "Well, before Miss Shimizu owned the house, a man by the name of Yuki Sasaki lived here with his daughter, Satomi. She was supposed to have been pregnant when she mysteriously died.

"Yuki then moved into the city where he died of cancer two years later. As for the history before Yuki and Satomi, no one ever lived here long enough for a family member to die. And the house was empty for about 50 years before Miss Shimizu picked it up.

"It seems as though all of the children who have gone missing or turned up…deceased, have all been male. Not one was a female child so I'm going to guess that Satomi was pregnant with a boy when she met her untimely demise," Yasu said, flipping through pages as he spoke.

Masako sat on the couch looking nauseous. Now that I thought about it, she'd looked like that ever since Mathew's burial. She was muttering something under her breath. Man, she looked like she was going crazy.

"Masako, what's the matter? Are you feeling sick?" John asked, crouching in front of her and putting a hand on her knee.

Masako looked up at us with confused eyes. "Over all, seventeen people have died here, sixteen of them being children, right?" she asked, staring up at Naru.

"Yes," he affirmed, "That we know of."

"None of their spirits have lingered though. Only one has lingered. With how horrific their deaths must have been, at least a few of them should have stayed. Why only the one?" she wondered, disappearing back into her mind.

"That is odd," Ayako murmured.

Everyone except for Naru, Lin and the kids tuned to stare at me. "Okay, it's time to go to sleep, Mai," Monk said as Yasu threw a pillow into her face.

"You guys suck!" I yelled as they pushed me into an empty closet and locked the door.

"Just for you!" they sang.

…..

_The sobbing of a young woman penetrated my mind as I opened my eyes. I was watching a scene. It was grainy with faded out colors like an old film._

_The young woman sat in her bed, sobbing into her hands. "I don't want to die. I want to be a mother. I don't want to die! I want to be a mother!" she said over and over, her voice crescendo-ing to a scream. She coughed into her hands. They can away with crimson blood._

_I flinched as she chucked her water basin with another wet scream. It shattered against the wall inches from me. Water splattered me, causing my clothes to turn one shade darker. The left over water spread across the floor with long fingers._

_She screamed again, this time in pain, thrashing around on her bed. A priest and who I assumed was her father burst in through the door. They held their crosses aloft as if to stave off a demon._

"_The demon has caused her to go mad," the priest declared as the father struggled to restrain his daughters flailing limbs with rope so frayed that it looked like it would snap at any moment. "I will attempt to cleanse her once more."_

_She screeched, sounding more like a banshee then a girl now. "Leave me alone! Don't touch me! I'm not possessed!"_

_The priest began to chant and the girl just got angrier. She shrieked with her new found voice, jerking against the rope and kicking the wooden bed posts with all her strength._

_The frayed roped snapped under her strength just as the bed posts broke. Now freed, she launched herself at the priest. Then she ran out the door._

"_The villagers are waiting outside for her. There is nothing more we can do for her," the priest told her father, putting a hand on his shoulder._

"_No don't go that way!" I screamed, running after the girl. The ran out the back door and into the lavender field. Villagers holding lethal looking weapons circled around her._

"_Please, all I want is to be a mother. Please, don't hurt me," the girl pleaded with them, standing in the middle of the circle._

"_I will dispel you demon!" one villager cried, rushing towards her, followed by the rest._

**So, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I'm really looking forward to the next one. I had a lot of fun writing it.**

**Now, for the announcement of the order I'm going to write the new fanfics. First will be another Ghost Hunt, second will be Gakuen Alice, third will be Seikon no Qwaser, fourth Code Geass, fifth will be Harry Potter and last will be Millennium Snow.**

**Since that's out of the way, do any of you know Mai's parents names or seen them anywhere cause I have no idea what they are. I'm just going to make them up if no one has a clue. Review please! :D**


	27. Chapter 27: A Possession

**Okay, so I decided something big which you'll find out about in this chapter. I just hope you guys don't hang me for it.**

**Last chapter I might not have been clear enough about the Mai's parents names thing. I know that her dad has been dead since she was little and her mother since middle school, but for something I'm writing I need their names. I was just wondering if they had been mentioned somewhere in the light novels cause I haven't been able to find the light novels on the net yet and have a feeling I won't. So if they aren't, then I'll just come up with them unless you guys have some suggestions for their names. I don't really mind what they are.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ghost Hunt**

Chapter 27: A Possession

Mai's POV:

"No! Leave her alone!" I screamed, reaching to stop the villagers. The dream was already gone though and I was simply grasping at velvety darkness.

A door flung open and sunlight spilled in on me. My eyes stung as I watched a black figure reach down for me.

The figure picked me up as I began to sob. "All she wanted was to be a mother, but they killed her! They killed her because she was sick!" I cried, burying my face in the person's shirt. The scent was familiar and I instantly knew that it was Naru.

"Do you know where she died?" he asked quietly, sitting down with me cradled against his chest.

I nodded. "In the lavender field, where we found Mathew," I whispered, laying my head on Naru's shoulder and closing my eyes, letting the tears run unchecked.

"When you're ready, please tell us what happened in the dream," he told me, rubbing my back.

It was somewhere around an hour before I could so much as stop crying and it took extra strength to open my mouth and speak. Once I had finished, struggled to my feet to go make tea.

I was getting ready to pour the water when a woman's voice whispered in my ear. "You can help me." Maniacal laughter filled the small room as I slumped to the floor.

…..

Naru's POV:

We sat in base for a long time, waiting for Mai to return. When thirty minutes had passed and she still hadn't returned I got up.

"I'm going to check on Mai," I stated before making my way to the kitchen.

Mai was laying on the floor, her upper body stretched across the floor and her legs folded beneath her. "Mai," I said, stepping over to her quickly.

"What happened to her?" Ayako asked, coming in with the rest of the team. They piled into the small kitchen, making breathing room scarce. Why they had decided to follow me was a mystery.

I shook my head and turned to Mai. "Mai, are you alright?" I asked as I gingerly pulled her up into a standing position.

Her eyes fluttered open and she was suddenly glaring at me with flat, green eyes. "Who the fuck are you? Get off of me you rapist," she growled, jerking away from me. She backed up so that her waist hit the edge of a small table.

Laughter from Yasu, Monk and Ayako filled the room. "Did Mai just call Naru a _rapist_? Whoo! That's a hard blow to one's self-esteem," Monk gasped between laughter.

I seethed with silent anger for a second, glaring at the trio. I turned back to Mai, asking my question once more, "Mai, are you alright?" Even though it was extremely obvious that she wasn't, the question had to be asked.

"Mai, Mai, Mai. Who's Mai?" Mai asked, her face twisting with an anger that did not belong to the original Mai. Those strange green eyes burned with a different fire. Even the voice that came through her lips was not her own.

"That would be the girl you are currently possessing," Masako muttered, a bit of annoyance showing through her carefully controlled calm.

Mai laughed. "Finally someone intelligent. I am definitely not Mai. My name is Satomi Sasaki. I definitely picked a good one this time," the now labeled Satomi said, placing a hand over Mai's stomach, "If I stay in this body I can finally be a mother."

"That's Mai's and Naru's baby, and you can't have it!" Ayako shouted, clenching her hands into fists. Monk placed a calming hand on her shoulder, but she shrugged it off.

"No! I never had a chance to be a mother! It's my turn!" Satomi shouted, inching around the table, away from the rest of the group.

"Neither has she. How can you say it's your turn when she hasn't even had the chance to give birth yet?" I growled, taking a step towards her.

"If you don't leave me be I'll just kill all of you, her and the baby!" she shouted at me, grabbing a knife off of a near by counter and holding it close to her stomach, tip pointing towards where the womb would be located.

"No!" came from everyone's mouths, even Mai's body's mouth in it's original voice.

"That little bitch. She's fighting me," Satomi ground between her/Mai's teeth, "I will have your body!" She dropped the knife with trembling fingers, as if someone was forcing her hand open.

"No you won't! Leave my baby and friends alone!" Mai snarled back before her brown eyes suddenly snapped shut.

Before she could collapse on that dreaded knife, I caught her in my arms. I carried her back to base and laid her gently on the couch. "Father Brown, do you think you can drive out the spirit?" I asked the blonde-headed priest, unwilling to say Satomi's name.

He nodded, a grim expression on his face.

Once changed, John quickly began his ritual. A frown curved down his normally smiling lips only half way through the ritual, but he plowed on to the end. "She is…very resistant," John said slowly, opening his eyes to look at Naru.

"And she's not gone either. She still clings to Mai. Though she's not in her body. I think Mai will be fine for the time being," Masako said from behind her hand. She had lately taken to wearing regular clothing in her last months of pregnancy.

As if on Masako's cue, Mai began to stir. She groaned and grumbled, shifting were she lay until her eyes slowly opened to reveal her usual chocolate brown eyes. She stared at us with huge child-like eyes.

"Mai, are you okay?" Ayako ventured first.

Mai flinched as if she'd just been slapped. "W-who are you?" she asked in a child's voice, "Please don't hurt me."

I crouched down next to her and reached out a hand. When she flinched again, my hand dropped to my side. "Don't worry, we won't hurt you. Do you know where you are?" I asked in a quiet, tender voice that seemed to surprise our teammates.

I smiled to myself. Still able to surprise them after all these years, just wait till they find out _that_. Wonder what their expressions will be then.

"I-I was m-making cookies with my Mama at home, waiting for Papa to come home from work when I was suddenly here. I don't know w-where I am," she whimpered, beginning to cry, "Where am I? Who are you? Where are my mommy and daddy, and Oliver and Eugene?"

Lin and I jerking in surprise at the sound of my real name, but no one seemed to notice as Yasu started to speak. "Naru, what's the matter with her? Doesn't she remember that her parents…" Yasu began to ask before I pushed him hard into Monk. I thought my team was smarter then this, but I guess not.

I grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and drug him out into the hallway. Slamming him against the wall, I let all my new found anger and frustration pour into my voice, "Were you not listening to a single word she said? Don't you see that she's regressed to before her parents died? She has no memories of anything that occurred after that. Not you, not me, not Monk, not any of the cases that we've been on. I swear to God, if any of you make even the slightest mention of that event and cause her more turmoil, I will personally see to your hospitalization and/or death."

Pushing away from him, I went back into base which was cleared of everyone except for the crying Mai. Crouching down next to her again, I put my hand on her arm. She didn't flinch, but she did nearly jump out of her skin.

She looked fearfully at me through her fingers. I have her a small smile. "Do you want to know where you are?" I asked, watching her closely.

She nodded her head ever so slightly so I continued. "You're in a really big house surrounded by a huge lavender field that is really fun to play in," I told her, exaggerating the adjectives like little kids do all the time, "I don't know where your parents are or where Eugene is, but I'm going to help you find them. My name is Kazuya Shibuya, but you can call me Naru if you like." No one seemed to notice that I hadn't mentioned 'Oliver'.

She tried to wipe away the leftover tears as she bobbed her head in a nod. With a smile, she said, "Thank you, Mr. Naru. My name is Mai, but you already knew that."

**Sapphire: Dun dun duuuuuun. Oh noes! Mai's lost her memory! What's going to happen next? What is Naru going to do?**

**Naru: I'm going to kill you.**

**Sapphire: Now, now, you can't kill me or Mai will never get her memory back.**

**Naru: Damn…**

**Sapphire: Anyway, don't expect these little dialogs too often. I just needed something to fill this big empty void at the bottom. Hope you liked this chapter and stay tuned for the next one in a couple days, or maybe even tomorrow. :D**

**Mai: Review please or Sapphire will get slow on the chappy updates!**


	28. Chapter 28: An Abduction

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ghost Hunt**

Chapter 28: An Abduction

Naru's POV:

A sharp pain stabbed through my chest when she said "Mr. Naru" as if she didn't know me. So polite. So formal. I ran my thumbs under her eyes, catching the left over tears. Then I produced a white handkerchief. It was white because Mai hated me carrying only black items. She always told me that I looked like I was attending a funeral.

Mai giggled. "You have a funny name, Mr. Naru," she said with a huge Mai-like grin.

"Yeah, it's strange isn't it?" I said, grinning back at her, "Do you want to meet the rest of the people who are going to help me find your mom and dad and Eugene?"

She thought about it for a second and then gave me a tentative nod. On cue, the rest of SPR spilled through the door and made a semi-circle around us. "Hi there, Mai. My name is Houshou Takigawa, but you can call me Monk," Monk began, smiling widely at her.

The hand that she had placed on my arm tightened exponentially. Holly crap, she was strong. She didn't seem to notice how strong she was holding my arm as the rest plowed on.

"I'm Ayako and this little guy is Mizuki," Ayako said next, waving using Mizuki's little hand.

"And I'm Masako Hara," Masako said.

"My name is John Brown. It's a pleasure to help you," John said in his odd, but soothing Australian accent. Mai's hand loosened just a little, a small sigh escaping her lips.

"I'm Yasu and I'll be your big brother so if you need anything, just ask," Yasu said next, but with his usual dramatic flare.

Jamie stepped out from behind Lin's legs, looking at Mai. "I-I'm Jamie. Mai, are you hurt?" he asked quietly.

"No," Mai answered, a little surprised, "Thank you for asking Mr. Jamie."

Jamie giggled happily at his new title. "This is my daddy," he said happily, wrapping his arms around Lin's leg and looking up at him.

"My name is Lin Koujo," Lin said simply, picking up Jamie in the process.

"It's nice too meet all of you," Mai said sweetly, her grip loosening even more as she settled into the tide of our team.

"So Mai, you want to go play in the lavender field with Monk and the others? We can play whatever you want," Monk coaxed, grabbing her hand to pull her up before she could respond.

He pulled her to her feet and they all started filing towards the door. "Um…uh…um…" Mai stuttered, looking between me and the door.

I walked over to her, placing a hand on her head. "It's okay, he'll be nice," I told her and then said to Monk in a lower voice, "Take good care of her because of something happens to her, all that precious hair will be gone tomorrow morning."

Mai grabbed my sleeve before the group could sweep her away. "Come play with us, please," Mai said, hanging onto my arm.

I looked down at her with a soft smile. "Do you want me to come that much?" she nodded vigorously. "Okay, I'll come." A smile split her face and she raced out of the house, holding my arm the whole time.

"Let's play hide-n-seek!" Mai shouted with a round of agreements from the other kids.

"Whose going to count?" Monk asked, holding up several kids who were hanging off of his arms.

"Tag, you're it!" a little girl shouted as she tapped John on the hand, "You have to count now!"

"Okay, here we go. One…" John began, closing his eyes.

The kids squealed their delight and scattered, dragging someone along with them. Mai dragged me, running to the far edge of the field and ducking down in the tall lavender plants. "Shh," she giggled, holding a finger to her lips.

Before John had reached 80 a scream echoed over it. "Brother!" the little girl's voice screamed from far off.

We popped up from our hiding place to see everyone running toward the little girl from before. Grabbing Mai's hand, we took off towards her.

The little girl had her arms wrapped around a sobbing boy. He was splattered with blood along with a number of other sobbing children. Their ages ranged between thirteen and the youngest being two. Every one of them was alive.

I let go of Mai's hand and crouched in front of the children. "Are any of you hurt?" I asked.

The oldest boy shook his head, plucking at his bloody clothes. "Are there any more of you that didn't get sent back?" I asked, taking note of how little children were actually back out of 50.

He looked down sadly. "No, I don't think there are. She was pretty pissed when she popped in, but after a little bit she must have realized something because she got all happy. Then we were here, in the sunlight for the first time in weeks for some and hours for some," he told us.

"Realized something?" I asked before it dawned on me, "Oh no, Mai!" I spun around, getting to my feet and searching the crowd.

"Where's Mai?" Monk shouted, staring over everyone's heads to search for Mai, "Naru, she's gone!"

…..

"Do you know where you were held during the time of your abduction?" I asked, my hands clasped together in front of me. My knuckles her white with how hard I was gripping them so that I wouldn't grab something and toss it out a window. I'd been feeling that since the moment we got back to base.

The boy I had spoken to earlier, the oldest one, sat in front of me. He shook his head. "No, but the one time I felt the walls they felt like they made of stone and some parts had moss growing on it. The whole time I was there the room kept a constant temperature which leads me to believe that we were underground. And sometimes, I could hear the kids playing up above. It was faint, but I could hear them."

I nodded my head. "Thank you for the information," I told him.

"Do you think Miss Shimizu has an original blueprint or floor plan of the house?" Lin asked, stopping his typing long enough to look at the boy.

"I think so. I can go ask if you like," he said, standing up to leave.

"Yes, please so that and as quick as you can," I said, standing up and shaking the boys hand.

"I will and…I'm sorry that Mai was taken. From what I heard, she was really nice," he told me, staring at the table, "And the way the kids talk about her, she would have been a great mother."

"She _will _be a great mother and she is nice. Please hurry with the map," I corrected, staring out the window at the darkening sky now. Lightning flashed and thunder rolled.

"You're right. I'll get you that map right now," he told me, bowing and left.

**Sapphire: What's going to happen to Mai now? Will she end up like the others or will Naru find her in time? Sorry Mai, I wish you luck. Look forward to the next chapter in a couple days!**

**Naru: If I don't get to her in time, I blame you and you will give us compensation.**

**Sapphire: *looks skeptical* If you can catch me.**

**Mai: Oh shut it you two. Review so that Sapphire will update sooner! All of your fantastic reviews, faves and alerts gives her motivation to write faster! :D**


	29. Chapter 29: Blood and Bones

**Okay, so here's the ending chapter for this case. Next couple chapters will be fillers mostly. Have to get the wedding over with, plus Masako's about to pop so she needs to give birth so expect the…32nd**** chapter to start off a new case.**

**Hope you like this chapter even though I didn't. I must say, converting 3****rd**** person to 1****st**** person is quite a hassle.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ghost Hunt**

Chapter 29: Blood and Bones

Naru's POV:

We stood in front of a wall where the door to the basement should have been. The floor plan showed it, but the wall said "I be not in existence."

Where was the fucking door?

I ran a hand through my already mussed hair. "Did a door ever exist here? Did you even know that there was a basement to this house?" I asked Miss Shimizu, running my hand over the smooth wall. I only just kept myself from digging my nails into the wall in frustration.

She shook her head, staring at the wall. "No. I've never even seen a door leading down from outside. Those doors have never existed for as long as we've lived here."

"Well, they better find a way to worm their way into existence before I…" I started to say before a loud, shrill shriek emanated from below our feet.

"Mai!" everyone cried.

…..

Mai's POV:

I sat up slowly in the dark room, alone, cold and covered in something sticky and sickly metallic smelling. The room smelt musty and was damp. Maybe a cellar or basement? I had no idea.

Above me, I could hear the frantic footsteps of eight people pacing back and forth between two specific places. One set in particular footsteps caught my attention.

I wanted to cry out. For those people, that person, to hear me, but someone had bound and gagged me. Obviously, whoever had done this to me did not want me found.

Wriggling around, the knots holding the gag and bonds in place slowly came undone until I was fully mobile once more. It was pitch black making it impossible for me to even see my own hands.

Hesitantly, I reached out, searching to find something, anything, that might indicate where I was. My hand nudged something also covered in the sickly smelling residue.

I closed my hand around it and brought it closer to my face for inspection. The object seemed vaguely familiar, like I'd seen it before, but had never actually touched it before.

On further inspection, what it was became clear. It was a bone. A human bone covered in blood.

I screamed. I screamed as loud as I could. As loud as I ever had before, scuttling back quickly into a corner. "Mai!" eight voices rang out from above as their owners rushed to the spot closest to me.

A loud bang echoed from above followed by another and another.

"Oliver! Naru! Oliver! Naru!" I repeated these two names, my voice becoming louder with each repeat. A sob broke through the mantra. "Oliver, help me, please," I whimpered.

Light suddenly flooded the room as one last bang broke through the wall. The floor and I were illuminated, causing me to scream again, "Oliver!"

…..

Naru's POV:

I threw one last shot of my PK at the blank wall which caused it to crumble, illuminating a set of wooden stairs. I flew down them as I heard Mai scream m name again.

I was about to hit the basement floor when I skidded to a stop before I had even touched the last step. Human bones littered the floor and blood crawled its way towards Mai with a maddening pace. Every inch of the room was crimson, including Mai.

Monk, Yasu, Lin, John and Ayako rushed down behind me to stare at Mai's blood covered form. Ayako shrieked and retreated back up to the middle of the steps.

Mai's eyes roamed over us until they came to rest solely on me. "Oliver! Oliver, Oliver, Oliver! Oliver, help me!" she cried, tears streaming down her face and her head clutched between her shaky knees.

Sob after sob shook her body so badly that it looked painful as I quickly crossed the middle of the room. Mai's eyes shone vacant and unseeing as she covered her face with her hands, pleading, "Oliver, where are you? Save me, please Oliver."

"It's okay. I'm here now. I'll save you," I told her soothingly. The moment I was about to pull her into my arms she abruptly pushed me away rough enough to make me stumble back a few steps.

"Don't touch me! I'm dirty… I'm c-covered in b-blood. W-where's Oliver?" she whispered, shaking like a scared puppy with a new round of sobs.

"Oliver is right here. I'm Oliver. Do you really think I would care if you're dirty or not?" I asked her quietly, a little annoyed that she'd even think of something like that. Against her wishes, I jerked her up into my arms.

She sobbed into my shirt, clenching it with white hands. I moved us around the room instead of going through the center which was where most of the blood pooled. "Monk, Father Brown, conduct an exorcism on this area," I instructed as we reached the stairs.

"She's mine! I won't let you take this body from me!" Satomi screamed.

"Monk! John!" I shouted and they began chanting.

Satomi screamed. The room began to shake and the walls bowed as if something was smashing into them from the outside. On the wooden floors above our heads, feet stomped and on the plaster walls there were knocking sounds.

"She's mine!" Satomi screeched, flinging sharpened bones at us.

Monk increased his mantra speed and even Ayako jumped back down the stairs to join in with the two men. Suddenly, everything went eerily quiet. Only our breathing could be heard.

I was the first to break the spell. "Miss Shimizu, a bathroom with a shower please," I said, leading a catatonic Mai up the stairs.

Still awestruck, she pointed down the hall. I slipped my arms under Mai, hoisted her up and took her down the hall. In the bathroom, I set her down on her feet.

Closing the door and locking it behind us, I took off my jacket, shoes and socks. I rolled up my pants legs and shirt sleeves.

"Come now, don't be difficult," I coaxed as I grabbed the edge of Mai's shirt and tried to pull it over her head. She complied easily, not even batting an eye when I took her shoes and skirt as well.

I steered her into the shower and turned on the hot water. She didn't even flinch as the steaming water hit her, beginning to wash the blood down the drain. She was still wide-eyed and shaking with fear. There was no life left in her brown eyes.

I stared at her for a long moment before wrapping my arms around her. "Come back to us Mai," I whispered in her ear, "It's going to be alright."

…..

Mai's POV:

I stood in the dark, staring around. A grainy memory slowly materialized. In it, I was young, about six or seven years old.

A black car pulled up in front of our house and people began clambering out, four people to be exact. I squealed happily, running to the front door. "Mommy, Daddy, they're here! Oliver and Gene are here!" I shouted, yanking the door open and plowing head long into a black haired boy, "Oliver!"

"Woah there, Mai. Hello and can you please try not to kill Noll?" Gene said, standing with his hands on his hips.

I stuck out my tongue at him, hugging Oliver hard around the waste. "I would never kill Oliver 'cause I love him!" I declared, grinning.

"No!" my dad cried dramatically, faking fainting, "My daughter it already in love! My little girl, no! Oliver, if you ever break my little girl's heart you'll have to answer to me."

"Hey now! All the girl's are supposed to love me!" Gene complained as Luella and Martin came up behind Gene and Oliver, chuckling.

"Well, too bad," Oliver and I said together.

"You're not nice," Gene pouted, but I ignored him.

"Oliver, come on. I made cookies with Mommy. I want you to try them," I said, pulling Oliver's hand. He followed willingly, laughing.

"No! Those are Daddy's cookies made by his special little girl just for me!" my dad shouted from the doorway.

The other three parents laughed. "Come on honey, let's go have a nice chat with Luella, Martin and Gene. Mai will bring us some cookies and tea won't you sweetie?" my mom said more then asked, pushing my dad into the living room.

"Yes, Mommy!" I called, taking Oliver to the kitchen.

"Use that new blend we made this morning," she called.

"Okie dokie," I called back before turning around to face Oliver, "We made a new tea today! Do you want to try some to, Oliver?"

"Of course, but Mai, how many times have I told you to call me Noll?" he asked, ruffling my hair.

I grabbed his hand, giggling, "But why? I like your name."

"I feel closer to you when you call me by my nickname," he said, looking away from me with a light blush coloring his cheeks. Oh, he was so cute!

I laughed. Throwing my arms around him, I cried, "I love you, Noll!"

He grinned. "I love you too, Mai and always will," he said, hugging me back and I was suddenly thrust back into the darkness.

I was only given long enough to think, "Why didn't Naru tell me?"

**How was it? I thought it was crap, but that was only my opinion. I just got back from watching Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows Part 2, oh my goodness, that was an awesome movie! I'm not even joking! Instead of going out with a fizzle like most long series, it went out with a BANG! Loved it!**

**Review please for the sake of the next chapter. Idk if it's totally ethical, but whatever, the teasing is cute and I've kind of left Naru hanging since 2 months ago :D**


	30. Chapter 30: A Birth

**So, I hope you guys like this chapter. I worked really hard on it. I feel sort of bad for what I do to Masako in this one and don't know if what I did can really happen, but since it concerns the nerves I'm guessing its possible, I did some research and it helped a little.**

**I also hope you get why Mai ends up laughing her ass off in this chapter. If you don't then I'm sorry, but you'll never know like the rest of the time. This time Mai initiates it though ;D**

**Disclaimer: I only own the children and November.**

Chapter 30: A Birth

Naru's POV:

Mai startled, as if waking out of a trance. Hot tears began to stream down her face. Turning around, she grasped at my soaked shirt. Loud sobs bubbled up from deep in her chest.

I tightened my arms around her as I tried to calm her with soothing words. "It's okay. You're okay. You're safe," I told her.

"So much blood. And all those bones! All those poor children who never got a chance to live! I…I was covered in it…" she cried, shuddering harder. Her hands roamed aimlessly over her body as if she was trying to scrape off the feeling of blood on her skin.

"Shh, it's gone. It's all gone. You'll be fine. You don't have to go through that ever again," I whispered, stroking her hair slowly. I pressed my lips to hers softly, calming her sobs.

She pushed her hands up around my neck, anchoring herself closer to me. We stayed like that for a long moment. Suddenly, I felt her body tense under my touch and she shoved me away hard.

She glared daggers at me, her brown eyes burning with fiery. "Oliver Davis, how dare you deceive me!" she yelled, backing me into a corner.

I was surprised that she had remembered me, but I couldn't linger on the fact since she was yelling at me once more. "You leave, out of no where! Poof! You're gone! Then you show up I don't even know how many years later and don't even attempt to look for me! And when we do meet you don't even bother to remind me that you were my first love! And under an alias none-the-less! Do you know how much it hurt me -no, how long- when you left? You pompous, narcissistic jerk!"

She breathed heavily, still glaring at me. "I wasn't sure if you were truly you. You didn't seem to remember me one bit and you've grown so much since we were children. I recognized you once I heard your name, sure, but I didn't know if it was truly you or just my mind playing tricks on me. I'm sorry," I explained, actually meaning it for about the second time in my life.

"That's no excuse. You could at least have tried to remind me and don't think you're lovely twin Gene is going to get off scott free. Oh no no no. He's getting such and ear full when I get my hands on him," she growled, her hands clenching and unclenching.

"What about me?" Gene asked, randomly materializing beside Mai.

She turned beet red as he stared at her only in her panties and bra with a smile plastered to his face. I glared at him, getting ready to tell him off, but Mai got to him first. "Oh my god Gene, get out! My body is not for your eyes to see!" Mai cried, pressing close to me in an attempt to cover herself somewhat.

Gene laughed. "It's not like I haven't seen it all before, especially your body," he said, but when Mai threw a bar of soap at him he conceded, "Okay, okay, I'll go play with the little ones and terrorize your eavesdropping team for a bit. Bye-bye." With that he walked through the door and Mai was back on my case in an instant.

"Well, what about you? You completely and utterly forgot Gene and I. What's your excuse?" I asked, staring down at her.

"I was six and after my dad died I locked up most of the memories concerning him. Which cause me to, consequently, forget them. That is until a few moments ago," she said and I sighed.

"Good point. Look, I'm sorry Mai, but I didn't want to dredge up any bad memories if you truly had been you. You didn't remember us, but that was fine. I knew you and still loved you, that was enough for me," I told her, placing my hands on her shoulders.

She opened her mouth to retort, but I didn't giver her the chance to get in a word as I pressed our lips together once more. Her eyes fluttered shut and she melted into putty in my capable hands.

"Mm, the shower water is beginning to get cold," Mai whispered against my lips, a mischievous smile twisting her lips.

"Well, that's no good now is it?" I asked her, "Would you like some company in that shower? Two hands are better then one you know?"

"Sound like a plan," Mai said, grabbing the collar of my shirt to pull me into another kiss as she unbuttoned my shirt.

…..

Mai's POV:

An hour later, we walked into base, our hands intertwined. The whole team was there, but the equipment was nowhere to be seen.

"Oh my goodness, they live! I thought you two had drowned or something! It was so quiet after Mai finished yelling at you!" Yasu shouted as Naru sat in the last available seat and I sat on his lap.

Naru and I looked at each other with twin smirks. "Quiet they say?" we asked together before I broke down in laughter.

"What's so funny?" Monk asked, suspicious.

"That is something you will never ever find out," I gasped between laughs.

They all shook their heads, but smiled in spite of the day's events. I could tell that they were relieved to have me laughing and smiling again, and not semi-catatonic.

"So Naru, when are we getting out of here? As you can see, the van's been packed," Ayako asked, spreading her hands wide.

"I thought it'd be nice to hang around for a little while. It's good to have a vacation once in awhile especially for those of us expecting babies," Naru said, resting his chin on my shoulder and hands on my stomach.

"That's not going to happen," Masako said slowly, staring at the coffee table. Her eyes widened and the hand placed in John's seemed to tighten quite a lot.

"Masako sweetie, what's wrong?" John asked, turning Masako's face towards his.

She whispered something that made us all jump into motion. "My water just broke."

Monk, Ayako and Yasu started freaking out which made it noisier then it needed to be. It was funny that Monk and Ayako would be the ones freaking out when they've already had a child. Naru quickly took the reins of the situation.

"Lin, get the van. Takigawa, get your car! John, Mai, let's get Masako up and in the car. Yasu, stop freaking out and go with Lin!" Ayako, grab Mizuki and Jamie and get outside," Naru directed. No one questioned him as Masako hissed in pain.

We maneuvered Masako outside just as Monk pulled up in his car. John traded spots with Monk once we had gotten Masako into the passenger seat. "We'll meet you guys at the hospital," Naru said as Ayako climbed into the car next to Mizuki's car seat and I slid in next to her, shutting the door.

Masako was crushing John's hand in hers. "Sounds good. John, let's go," I said as Masako this time hissed out a stream of curse words.

"It's going to be alright," John said, squeezing Masako's hand back as he sped off.

…..

Masako screamed from the delivery room. Soon after arriving she had replaced curing for random fruits, ghost types and Catholic religious icons, but now she was just screaming.

"She doesn't sound like the epidurals working," November whispered to me, shuddering as we heard a sob. November had gotten here not long after us and hand slid down the wall to sit with Naru and me outside her room.

A pained look crossed my face. I felt so bad for her. She must have been in so much pain. "The incompetent anesthesiologist who was supposed to have a lot of experience hit the wrong nerve when testing the epidural which cause her pain receptors to become hyper-sensitive. They offered to try and stall her labor or to try a different drug, but she refused. I wish I could to something for her," I told November, gripping one of Naru's and one of November's hands harder as another scream ripped through the hall.

"You're going amazingly, Masako. Almost there. Just a little more," we heard John saying, his voice strained and choked.

Ayako had long since retreated into the waiting room with Monk, Yasu, Lin, Madoka, Jamie and Mizuki. The screaming didn't seem to bother the kids, but anyone who walked by could tell that it really bothered the rest. To them, the screaming didn't seem to belong to Masako.

"Okay, Masako honey, you're almost done. Just one more push and I need you to make it as strong as you can," the doctor could be heard telling Masako over her sobs, "Now, push."

Masako's scream started up again and then suddenly it was quiet. Only moments after, a baby's wails filtered to us. November, Naru and I let out breathes that none of us knew that we had been holding. John stepped out less then fifteen minutes later supporting a little blue bundle.

We shot up to our feet, smiles glowing from November's, mine and John's faces. "Hey guys, say hello to Makoto Brown, the newest member of SPR," he said, bringing the little blue bundle over to us.

A baby's face peaked out from between the blue folds of the blanket. He was sleeping soundly, seemingly unaware of his new friends fawning over him. "He's soooooo cute," November and I crooned, gently stroking his chubby cheeks.

"Mai, can you come in here?" Masako asked weakly, her voice coming faintly from the room.

"Be right there," I called, then turned to John, "How 'bout you guys go introduce Makoto to the rest of the team? I'll be with Masako for a little bit."

I squeezed Naru's hand reassuringly as he looked down and me with concerned eyes. I smiled up at him. He had his hand wrapped around my waist, pressed to my stomach. "We'll have a baby of our own soon enough," I said quietly so only he could hear me. I reached up on tip-toes to peck him on the lips before I went into Masako's room and they went down the hall.

"How are you, Masako?" I asked as I stepped around the door. They had already cleared everything away, changed Masako's sheets and blankets and nightgown, and even cleaned her up a little. "What was it like?"

She was sitting up slightly in bed, watching me. "It was magical and wonderful," she said, an un-Masako-like smile gracing her lips, "After it's all done its not so bad, but I have been better. I have a question for you." She looked more mom-like with her disheveled hair and gentle smile.

"Yes? What is it?" I asked, coming to sit beside her bed.

"Will you be Makoto's godmother and do you think Naru would be up to being his godfather?" she asked, sitting up straighter in the bed.

"W-what? You really mean it? Of course we will, we'd be delighted to! And I know Naru won't mind because he actually doesn't mind kids and you guys mean so much to the both of us!" I cried, throwing my arms around her.

Masako smiled, hugging me back. "Thank you, Mai. And I don't think I ever told you how sorry I am for the way I used to treat you," she said, casting her eyes down.

"Forget about it! What's important is how we treat each other now. Be happy! It's a happy time!" I cried, pulling back and pushing her cheeks together.

She smiled, looking like a fish. "Of course, thank you."

"Okay, now I think it's time for mommy to sleep," the doctor said, coming in behind me with John behind her. He came over to Masako with the blue buddle that was Makoto.

I smiled back at the small smiling family before going back to the rest of the team.

…..

It had been a week since Masako had given birth and she had come home four days ago with Makoto. We were all sitting in the SPR office, chatting contentedly about non-important things when Masako said, "So Mai, your's and Naru's wedding is in two days is it not?"

I sighed in frustration and we all could have sworn that we heard Naru do the same in his office. "Don't remind me," I grumbled.

"We need to go out then and have a bacheloret party with us and the rest of your friends and then leave the kids with the boys for a day and go do all the girly stuff. Get pedicures, manicures, facials. I haven't gotten one since before Mizuki was born and Masako should be pampered a little," Ayako said, tapping her finger against her jaw, thinking.

"No parties. I'm pregnant and you guys have children. It's no fun if you can't drink at it," I said, shrugging my shoulders.

"Well, the rest sounds good to me," said two very familiar voices from behind me, "Let's go right now. Have fun boys. Teach Noll some good things about parenting while we're gone!" Both women grabbed my arms, pulling me over the couch.

"Aren't you guys going to help?" I asked Masako and Ayako who just smiled. "Naru, your mother and Madoka are kidnapping me again!" I called before the door slammed behind us.

**Hope you greatly enjoyed this chapter. If you got why Mai was laughing so hard then high five for you. It was a little vague, but I couldn't just leave Naru hanging there, poor boy :D**

**Review please for the sake of a good wedding ceremony for Naru and Mai. You never know, some unknown forgotten jerkwad, asshat might turn up again.**


	31. Chapter 31: A Wedding

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ghost Hunt or Black Butler**

**Yes, I am bringing Ciel and Sebastian back for this chapter :D have fun!**

Chapter 31: A Wedding

Mai's POV:

"You guys suck!" I shouted from my set. For two days I had been locking in a hotel room and now I was stuck in a dressing room at the church.

Against my will, they had strapped me to a chair to tend to my hair and make-up. Someone was running a brush through my hair that at grown to the middle of my back. "What are you complaining about now? We let you talk to Naru yesterday," Ayako said, standing back to scrutinize my make-up.

"For two minutes! And how can you not expect me to complain? You locked me in a hotel room and now have me strapped down to a chair!" I cried, struggling again.

Masako smiled apologetically, stepping in from the side. "Sorry about this Mai. I'd help you, but there's no fighting against these three," she said. She was wearing her maid-of-honor dress that was light slivery-blue and hung loosely on her small frame. Ayako, November, Michiru and Keiko were all dressed in their bride's maids dresses which were a dark blue with a black ribbon in the back.

I sighed. "I know," I said, finally stilling and relaxing enough for Ayako, Luella and Madoka to fuss over me.

"Oooh, you look so beautiful!" Luella and Madoka shouted, clapping their hands once I had wriggling into my dress. It was snow white, strapless and had so much tooling that I didn't know what to do with.

"Picture time!" Madoka cried, bunching all of the bride's maids together around me.

I had to say, I didn't actually mind all of this. It was actually a lot of fun with all the dresses and pictures and stuff. Plus, I actually felt pretty and couldn't wait to see what Naru looked like.

Someone knocked on the door just after we had started to mess around. I was in the process of flinging a small couch pillow at November when Martin walked in with Jamie attached to his hand.

"Jamie!" I shouted, running over to him -since they had yet to shove me into a pair of hooker heels- and hugged him, "You're soooooooo cute!"

Jamie giggled, throwing his arms around my neck and kissing me cheek. Martin chuckled. "You all look beautiful, especially you Mai," he said.

"Thank you!" we all said in unison with bright smiles.

"Jamie is so cute in his little ring-bearer outfit," Ayako crooned.

"Yes, he is," Madoka giggled, crushing him into a bone crunching hug.

"Are you all ready? We'll be starting in about twenty minutes. Oliver is already nervous and jittery. He's sitting in a corner right now staring at his phone," Martin interjected, causing us all to pause, laugh and then spring into action.

I slipped into my heels and allowed the women to put the final touches on my hair and make-up before they went off to do their own. They snapped my veil into place just as Gene popped up beside me.

He had a huge grin plastered to his face. "You look beautiful Mai," he said, leaning in to give me a peck on the cheek.

"Aw, thanks Gene, you look nice too," I said, noting his tux with a barely concealed giggle.

"Hey, don't laugh at me. Your soon to be hubby is wearing one too," he said with a slight blush curling across his cheeks.

If what I looked like made even Gene the ghost boy blush then I really wanted a mirror at this moment. "Yes, but that's different," I said, shrugging and then adjusting my dress.

"How? And I'm seriously wondering how you're not falling out of that dress," he said, using Naru's thinking pose this time to scrutinize my apparel.

"It just is and it's not falling off because I have the cleavage for it now," I said, grabbing my boobs and laughing. Masako laughed behind me.

"You should stop teasing him like that Mai. It's unethical," I heard her say, "He'll end up doing something drastic soon."

I laughed. "Aw, but it's so fun," I whined, standing up with the help of Martin.

"Are you sure you won't fall out of that?" Gene asked, still in his thinking pose, "I'd like to see that."

"Hey, don't push your luck, bucko. I'm still angry with you about not telling me of our childhood and for walking in on me in the bath yesterday," I growled, not really mad, but faking it.

"Okay, okay, I'll just go make my brother more nervous then he already it. Masako was right by the way, here's my drastic behavior," he said, pressing his lips to mine. It felt warm and real. Like kissing Naru, but also different because Gene and Naru are completely separate beings.

My face flared up and I stopped dead in my tracks. Gene pulled back, placing a finger to his smiling lips and winking. "See you at the alter."

Masako gawked after him. "Mai, what was _that_?" she cried, placing a hand on my shoulder.

"I have no idea," I said slowly, the blush still very much visible on my face, "I can't believe he did that!"

"My sons are still battling for your affection? They've been doing that since you three were little, but Gene was never one to give up easily even once he's lost," Martin said, patting my hand.

We made our way into a large room where all the men were waiting, plus the "flower-girl". November ran up, throwing her arms around him and hugging him hard.

"Thank you so much Ciel for doing this. We don't have any girls who can play the flower-girl," she said, looking him over.

Once again, he had a long wig on. It almost dragged on the floor with how long it was. He was adorned in a powder blue version of the dress he had worn in a picture I had found while at the Phantomhive manor, that Sebastian, his butler, was adjusting. He really did look lovely in a dress.

"Yes, Ciel, thank you so much. This really helped us a lot," I said, giving a hug as well.

"Your very welcome," Ciel said with an uncharacteristic smile.

A frazzled looking Barley came through the door at that moment. "Hurry and line up, we're about to begin," he said, pulling November over to Yasu.

Without another word, Martin and I headed to the back of the procession. Luella, Madoka and Sebastian left for their seats out the door. Masako handed me my bouquet before going to the front and running her arm through John's. November and Yasu were behind them followed by Ayako and Monk. Then Michiru and Barley. Last was Keiko and Alphonse. Behind them was Ciel with his flower basket holding little Jamie's hand.

The music began and we started marching out, waiting a couple seconds between each group. When Martin and I walked out a grasp circulated through the standing crowd of friends and family. Even Naru's mouth hung slightly agape.

Father Tojo, the priest from a case we had before Naru left, smiled at me from the alter with Naru next to him. Next to him, Gene was twiddling his fingers at me. I let my eyes skim across everyone, beaming at everyone as I made eye contact I slowly made my way to Naru.

My smile broadened when I looked at Naru. A delicate blush lit up his cheeks, but he smiled back at me. We made it to the alter and I turned to Martin. He lifted my veil and kissed my forehead before placing my hand in Naru's.

We turned to Father Tojo and Naru whispered, "Saying that you look beautiful would be an understatement."

"If I could kiss you right now I would," I told him in my own whisper.

"Soon enough," he said.

It wasn't long before we were finally exchanging vows. Ciel led Jamie by the hand up to us holding his little pillow with the rings set on them. It was only another few minutes before Father Tojo said, "I now pronounce you husband and wife! You may kiss the bride!"

I jumped at Naru, throwing my arms around his neck. We pressed our lips together. Everyone burst into cheers, clapping as we kissed.

…..

"Time to cut the cake!" Luella yelled from where she stood beside us, effectively catching everyone's attention. After we had eaten dinner, everyone had milled together, getting to know one another and waiting for the next step in the wedding.

A three-tiered cake towered in front of Naru and me. We shook our heads, but still smiled in spite of ourselves. Lin handed us the knife as Jamie reached for it. We took it, gripping it together and held it above Jamie's reach.

Together, we cut a small piece. Once on the plate we cut it in half. We each picked up a half and held it up for the other, shaking our heads at what Yasu and Monk were yelling.

"Shove it in his face Mai! Do it!" they shouted above the crowd making everyone laugh.

"Eat it! Eat it!" the rest chanted. I can't believe these are our friends.

Suddenly, both of our hands jerked up at the same time and both pieces of cake were shoved into our faces. Gasps of surprise went around the whole group.

It was quiet for a long moment before laughter built up in my chest and burst out. "Gene, I cannot believe you did that! Yasu, stop giving him ideas," I said, wiping cake out of eyes, but my face was still covered in it. I licked at the side on my mouth. "Mm, the cake is delicious."

Everyone else began laughing and taking pieces of cake. Naru had somehow only sustained cake damage around his eyes and across his nose and cheekbones. "Aw, I wanted a taste too," he pouted cutely.

I laughed. I pulled him down to my level and kissed his deeply. Loud cheers came from all around us. Naru pulled away, licking his lips. "You're right, it is good," he said.

"Towels for the lovey-dovey couple!" Victoria shouted and two towels descended over our heads.

"And how 'bout a cold bucket of water while you're at it!" someone in the back of the crowd shouted.

"After the dance, when they're trying to get into the limo!" Madoka shouted, pulling us out onto the dance floor. She let us clean up our faces before she cued the band.

I shook my head, placing my hand on his shoulder and my other in his hand. We began our waltz, only speaking once another couple, Lin and Madoka, had joined us.

"Have I told you how beautiful you are?" Naru asked, leaning his forehead against mine.

I grinned. "Many, many time. And have I told you how handsome you look?"

"You most certainly have," he said, pressing his lips to mine.

After the first dance, we were passed around our family like a piñata bat. By the end of the evening I could barely hold myself up, I was so danced out, but we still had to make it to the hotel.

"Remember, your plane leaves at 4 pm tomorrow. Don't stay up to late," Madoka said, winking.

"No guarantee there," I said as we burst through the doors of the church. Everyone was lined up on the steps and the moment that we began running, they were pelting us with rice.

"Let's have an amazing night and honeymoon. Hawaii, here we come!" I shouted once we were in the car.

"I won't let you down then," Naru said, pulling me into a kiss that left me a blushing puddle on the seat.

**Hope you liked it! I was trying so hard not to laugh or squeal throughout this whole entire chapter! I thought it was so cute :D hope you think so too**

**Next chapter will be the start of another case and a surprise will be there.**


	32. Chapter 32: Back to Work

**So, I skipped month 3 of Mai's pregnancy from a case because it was basically their honeymoon. Be assured though, there will be an extra case to compensate for the lack on one for month 3. By the way, sorry for those of you who expected something about their honeymoon, but it wasn't very interesting. Just lots of puking, you-know-what that newly weds do, and Mai getting hit on. Maybe I'll put a chapter up about it later.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ghost Hunt ):**

**Hope you enjoy this chapter! I certainly enjoyed writing it!**

Chapter 32: Back to Work

Mai's POV:

We sat in the waiting room. It hadn't been long, but being pregnant had kicked in some hidden ADD that I never knew I had so I was bouncing in my chair nervously. We had just gotten back from our honeymoon and then remembered that I had an ultra-sound today with a completely new doctor. Our first doctor had been in a car accident.

"Mai Shibuya?" a male nurse called from a doorway.

I shot up from my seat followed closely by Naru. "Here!"

"This way, please," he said, smiling weirdly and creepily at me. Somehow, he was completely oblivious, or completely ignoring, the fact that my very possessive husband was right beside me.

Naru gave him his coldest glare as we passed him into the room. "Please, come in," the doctor said, standing next to a bed with a green blanket on it, "I am Dr. Kagurazaki. Mrs. Shibuya, if you would please lie down here, then we can begin the ultra-sound." He gestured to the bed. He looked to be in his thirties with long brown hair pulled back in a ponytail and a kind smile.

I nodded spasmodically, hopping up on the bed. I laid back, resting my head on the pillow. Dr. Kagurazaki pulling the blanket up under my dress and then folded my dress back so that my now more then slightly bulging stomach was visible.

I doctor squeezed some weird jelly looking stuff onto my stomach and smoothed it so that there was an even coat. I jerked, the jelly was cold. "Sorry if that was cold. The nurse that brought you in, well, let's just say that he needs to go back to school," he said with an apologetic smile, placing a small stick on my stomach and then looked at the monitor.

Two heartbeats could be heard through the monitor speakers. One was deep and sounded far off and the other was fast and loud. That one sounded a bit odd.

"The loud and quick one is your baby's heartbeat and the other is your own. Your baby's sounds a bit odd though…" he said, trailing off as he stared at the screen with a contemplating expression, moving the stick over my stomach, "Hm, well that's interesting."

Scared expressions crossed both mine and Naru's faces. "What? What's the matter?" we both asked, worried.

"Oh no, nothing is wrong," Dr. Kagurazaki said hurriedly, trying to calm our panic, "No, your babies are perfectly healthy. Their heart beats are just so in sync that you can barely differentiate between the two. That's why together it sounds weird."

"Babies?" Naru kind of choked out, shock closing his throat as he stared at the doctor.

"Yes, two to be exact. Twins," he said, smiling at us, "Congratulations."

I sighed in relief, smiling up at Naru and squeezing his hand. "Twins," I said wistfully, "We're going to have twins. Just like you and Gene."

Dr. Kagurazaki observed our little happy family with quiet, fatherly eyes. Maybe he had a child of his own? A crease that had been between his eyebrows smoothed like he had decided something. "Would you like to know their sexes?" he asked.

"We can know that already?" I asked excitedly, almost jumping up and down, "Naru, please please please! Can we? I want to know!"

He smiled down at me, stroking my hair. "Of course, I want to know too."

"Well, in that case, let's see. Since there's two of them, it seems like it'll be a bit easier to decide. They're developing at the same rate, that's good. The one on the left, here, is a…girl, and the one on the right is a boy," the doctor said, tapping the screen and smiling as he told us. His smile seemed nostalgic to me, but I rubbed it off as my imagination.

"A-amazing. A baby girl and boy," I whispered, clutching at Naru's hand as my grin grew wider.

…..

"Mai, Naru, where are you? We know you're here!" Monk's voice shouted from the main room of the SPR office.

"Monk, stop yelling. They can hear you," Ayako's voice said next, slapping him upside the head gently and making Mizuki giggle.

Naru and I sighed in unison, still sitting in his office. We were reluctant to leave this quiet sanctuary that we had taken refuge in the moment we had got back from the ultra-sound.

Currently, I was sitting in his lap and dozing off, or trying to anyway, while he read a book. Honestly, couldn't we get any peace and quiet around this place? Oh gosh, I'm turning into Naru.

The main door opened again and I heard the footsteps of at least seven other people enter. "The whole gang is here now," I muttered, slinging my arm around Naru's shoulder and snuggling closer to him. A shiver ran up his spine as I buried my face in his neck. I chuckled.

"You shouldn't sound so seductive when your half asleep," Naru whispered, turning my head to kiss him when another person decided to join the crew, making us groan.

"This is Shibuya Physic Research, is it not?" a haughty sounding male voice said.

"How do people miss the bold freaking gold letters on the door?" I grumbled, pulling myself up off of Naru, "Let's get this over with." Tuning out the talking from the main room, I stretched, yawned and slapped my cheeks to wake myself up.

"You should stay in here and sleep. I can deal with the client," Naru said, opening the and looking over his shoulder at me.

"Not unless I want to wake up to a dead client. I may be the one pregnant, but you're the more irritable one. I'll make tea," I chuckled, resting my hand on his shoulder before heading to the kitchenette. The client had his back turned to me, taking to harassing Lin.

"Well, if you're not the boss, then I would like to speak with your boss," the man said with much more authority then he had.

"That would be me," I heard Naru say and then the now less then potential client scoffed.

"Don't make me laugh. You're just a child," he said, making my blood boil. Wonder what he would say if he knew what Naru had actually been through. I doubt he'd say Naru was a child then.

"And is there a problem with that? I own this company and have since I was 17-years-old. I highly doubt you own anything more then a simple hotel," Naru said, equally, if not more annoyed then myself.

It was quiet for a long moment. I brought the tea out, setting a cup in front of everyone. The client, a young man around my age with blonde hair and green eyes, sat staring at me. His mouth hung slightly agape.

"Take a picture, it last longer," I said sweetly, causing Naru to smirk into his cup and the rest of the group minus Lin and the kids laughed.

Quickly, he shut it, clearing his throat as his cheeks became slightly tinted with a light blush. "**You** must be the boss. My name is Sai Misato and I've come to ask you to take on a case," he said. He had lost the haughty, pompous attitude to be replaced with a charming one that failed miserably.

"Sorry sir, but I am not the boss. The boss is the 'child' sitting in front of you," I said, forcing myself to smile even though my lip twitched in annoyance.

He startled, turning his attention back to Naru who sipped his tea and completely ignored him. "Oh," was all Sai said.

An uncomfortable silence settled in until I broke it. "Uh, Mr. Misato, why don't you tell us what the case is about."

"Yes, of course. I run a small inn out by the sea in a heavily wooded area. Lately, people have been seeing a strange little girl wondering around and girls younger then ten have been disappearing. Sometimes they reappear after only an hours and then other times it takes days. The girls never remember being kidnapped. All they remember is seeing the little girl. Please, take my case. This is hurting my business."

I made a disgusted noise in the back of my throat before anyone to speak. "You business? Don't you care at all about what happens to those girls?" I asked, arms crossed over my chest and glaring down at him.

He stuttered, back tracking over his words quickly. "Well, of course I do. I want to make sure they're safe as well."

I just looked down at him with the same cold glare. Then a disturbingly evil sneer crossed my face. "It's not good for children to lie," I said slowly in an icy voice.

Sai paled.

"We will not be taking your case," Naru said, his mask still up, but looking scared all the same.

"Oh, yes we will," I shot at him, giving him a glare as well, "I will not stand by while children are being kidnapped. We'll take the case. Expect us tomorrow."

Sai nodded quickly before making a hasty escape, my glare following him all the way out the door.

"Mai, you're like, really scary," Monk stuttered.

I sighed, touching my fingers to my forehead. I had a fever. Lovely. "Some men are just so insensitive and rude. He was also staring at me like I was food. I thought he needed a good scare. Though, I think I may have turned him gay. Sorry Naru, looks like you'll be gaining a new fan," I said, turning before anybody could say a word and going back to Naru's office.

I laid down on the overly worn out couch, turning so that my face was buried in the back cushion. The fever was growing, washing over my body. I grabbed the front of the sweater, pulling it off and then slowly letting the small, smoldering flame spread darkness over my mind.

**So there you have it, chapter 32, hope you liked it :D I had a lot of writing the dark Mai into this. Wonder if one of the babies will come out with that kind of personality, that'd be somewhat odd.**

**Anyway, review please! They keep me going!**


	33. Chapter 33: A Burn

**Here you have it, chapter 33. For the first dream I have no idea what was going through my head while I wrote it. I might have been angry or angsty. I really don't know. I guess maybe I was just feeling cynical.**

**While I was writing this I felt soooooo stupid because I was watching Howl's Moving Castle and called Howl Naru while he was still a blonde *shakes head***

**Disclaimer: I don't and won't ever own Ghost Hunt**

Chapter 33: A Burn

Mai's POV:

_I opened my eyes slowly. It was hot. Chokingly hot. I couldn't see anything through the smoke that obscured my vision, burning my eyes._

"_Abram! Abram, help me!" I shouted, crawling along the floor, searching for the door. Where was he? Why couldn't I find him? He should have been here! He said he'd always keep me safe!_

_The wood of the door came into view. I scrambled to it, jerking it open. A group of me in their forties stood with torches. They smirked at me._

"_No…" I whispered fearfully, searching for an escape route that would save my life, but the house blazed orange behind me and the men created a semi-circle around me, "Abram. Save me. Please, where are you, Abram?"_

_The men advanced towards me, forcing me back until the flames licked at my thin cotton dress. Hands landed on me and I was jerked forward, falling onto my hands and knees. "Such a pretty little thing she is. She'll fetch a good price, especially being a foreigner," said the man who was forcing me to the ground._

_Tears streamed down my face. I would not cry out though, not for them. "Abram, where are you?" I shouted, struggling under the man's bruising knee, "Help me!"_

"_Shut up!" the man growled, shoving my face into the dirt, "Your precious Abram isn't coming to save you this time." The men cackled in their mirth._

"_Let's just kill her," one man said, "We can sell her for part. Make more money."_

_The man pinning me down smiled, showing rotten teeth. Disgusting. "Not before we have some fun. They won't need her skin," he said, grabbing my wrists with one hand. With the other he moved my long hair out of the way of my back and then brought a blazing torch towards my back._

_My eyes widened and a scream ripped my throat to shreds. "Abram!"_

…..

Someone was shaking me forcefully, frantically. "Snap out of it Mai! Wake up!" they yelled over my scream.

My cheek stung like it had just been bitten by a wasp. Someone had slapped me. Probably Ayako, again. Then someone's hand touched my back with only a few finger tips and I screeched in pain.

"Pain. It burns. It burns!" I shouted, curling in on myself as the pain and heat radiated from my back.

"Where Mai? Where does it burn?" someone asked quietly. Naru, it sounded like Naru.

I latched onto his shirt, panting as the tears flowed. "My back. They burned…my back. It hurts Naru," I sobbed, pressing my face against his stomach.

Naru leaned over me, pulling up the back of my dress to look at my back. I gritted my teeth as his fingers fluttered just above the burn. Suddenly, it stopped and instead pressed to my forehead. His hand felt nice and cold, making me sigh.

"Mai, you're burning up!" he cried in a very uncharacteristic way.

"Okay, everyone but Naru, out! Now!" Ayako shouted.

I heard shuffling and then I could only hear the pounding of my pulse in my ears. Someone grabbed the edge of my dress, jerking it up over my head in one swift motion. The person gasped.

"Do you suppose the dream…?" Ayako asked. She was applying something to the burn. It smothered the flame to a point, but did not extinguish it.

"I don't know," Naru muttered, his cool hands running up and down my arms, "And I don't want to know."

It was quiet for a long time except for my panting as Ayako applied the goo. Once she was done, she sealed it with a very big bandage and pressed a towel-covered cold compress to my forehead. "Take her home and make sure she gets lots of sleep. It's not good for the babies if she doesn't rest."

Naru didn't say anything until she had safely closed the door behind her. "Can you stand on your own?" he asked. I shook my head. Definitely not.

"And you can't be carried. Can you at least climb onto my back?" he asked. I thought about it for a second and then nodded.

"I think piggybacking is okay. You won't be touching my back so I'll be fine," I said.

"Okay then," he said. We wrestled my sweater back on before he crouched down in front of me. I clambered onto his back, stringing my arms around his neck. He supported my weight before getting up and heading for the door.

…..

"_Old Abram Brown is dead and gone, you'll never see him more. He used to wear a long brown coat that buttoned down to the floor," a little girl's voice sang from far off in the distance, repeating the verse over and over._

_In front of me an older looking man, maybe twenty years older then me, walked quietly through a graveyard. Mist curled menacingly around his ankles. Despite his age, the man's hair was graying and he walked with a limp._

_I turned to Gene, confused. "Who is that man?"_

"_Old Abram Brown," he said simply, watching the scene._

"_Abram. Where have I heard that name before?" I wondered allowed. Suddenly, the little girl's singing stopped. Minutes later it was replaced with screaming._

"_Abram, where are you? Help me!" the girl screamed and I instantly knew where the name was from. So this was who she had been calling for._

_The man whirled around, looking towards a hill where an orangish glow could be seen. "Amber!" he shouted, starting to run. Something swung towards him and he was suddenly sprawled on the ground._

_Blood pooled under the man in a crimson puddle. "Abram!" the little girl's anguished voice screamed._

…..

I jerked awake as the van rolled to a stop. Outside the window, a large two story inn loomed. It looked as if it were made of wood, like the house in my dream. Maybe they were made during the same time period?

Naru was opening up the van door and I quickly scrambled after him. I caught up to him, slipping my hand into his.

"Is your back still hurting?" he asked, squeezing my hand as we approached Sai. Already I wanted to punch that 'charming' smile off his perfectly smug face. What he was smug about? I didn't want to know.

"It started aching after I saw our client's annoying face. The twins aren't too happy to see it either," I grumbled, putting a hand over my stomach. It felt like a hundred butterflies were fluttering in my stomach.

"I think I'm the one who's going to have to keep and eye on you so that you don't kill the client," Naru said with an amused smile.

I grinned up at him. "Sorry, his stupid face just makes me so angry. I think I'll stay in base for most of this case."

"I think that's be a good idea," he said, giving me a peck on the cheek.

I giggled, but stopped quickly as I glimpsed the look on Sai's face. He was scowling at Naru. His from was not one of confusion, but one of unhappiness. He was already pissing me off.

"There something wrong Mr. Misato?" I asked with an overly sweet yet scathing tone.

"Not one," he grumbled, "My sister will take you to your rooms and base."

A peppy girl with blonde hair the same shade as Sai's bounced out. She looked quite familiar. "Julie!" I cried just as she skidded to a stop and shouted happily, "Mai!"

**Okay, there you have it. Hope you liked it. By the way, the song that the little girl was singing is actually a song that I learned from one of my choir friends. That's the whole song, I swear. It's just one verse repeated over and over apparently. Weird huh?**

**Review please and maybe I'll get rid of the unwanted people quickly :D**


	34. Chapter 34: Playing Poker with the Girls

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ghost Hunt**

Chapter 34: Playing Poker with the Girls

Mai's POV:

"Y-you guys know each other?" Sai stuttered, staring as Julie and I got reacquainted and she crooned over my swollen stomach like a doting mother.

"Of course we know each other, you silly goose," Julie teased in her high pitched voice, "She's the nice ghost hunter I told you about that helped me at the hot springs. So you missed your period because you were pregnant? That's awesome!" Wow, she can really switch topics at the speed of light.

Sai stared at us with wide eyes for a long moment before quickly saying, "I, uh, have business to attend to." With that, he turned and all but sprinted back into the inn. Wonder if he's worried about his little sister finding out that he's a player who hits on pregnant, married women.

"Oh, I'm sorry about my brother, her can be such a douche sometimes," Julie apologized with an overly bright smile and voice making everyone except for Naru and Lin burst into laughter. The ice cubes cracked small smiles though.

Julie laughed with us. "I'll take you to your rooms. We have you guys on the top floor since the bottom is full of guests. There will be some on the top floor too, but not many," she said, bouncing through the halls with us trailing her.

"Holy crap, she's like the energizer bunny," Monk whispered as she disappeared around a corner.

"She has a sarcastic bite to her too," I whispered back with a grin, remembering when I met her at the hot spring. We turned the corner and she was no where in sight.

"So she's basically like you and November," he said with his own grin.

"Minus the pregnant part," Julie whispered in Monk's ear, making him yelp in surprise. Monk backed into a wall, breathing hard and holding his ear. Julie grinned and opened a door.

The girls laughed and Naru just shook his head, setting down his load. "Takigawa, don't drop any of the equipment you're carrying," Naru said before going to get more stuff with the other boys.

"That leaves us to set up shelves," I said once I had finished laughing, wiping a tear out of my eye. Monk was blushing furiously, grumbling something under his breath as he left.

"I'll take my leave then. Mai, when you get some free time come and find me. We'll take a walk on the beach and you can tell me all about your pregnancy and marriage," she said, backing up through the door. She threw a wink at me before bouncing off to do god-knows-what.

I sighed. "Is the energizer bunny supposed to sap you of all your energy?" I asked with a tired smile.

"I don't know, but I'm sure beat. Let's get these shelves put together before the boys get back," Ayako said with a yawn before setting Mizuki down next to Makoto and grabbing shelf parts.

"Yeah! Let's show those men what we women are made of!" November shouted, competition burning in her eyes, beginning to build the shelves at warp speed. The rest of us just laughed and continued at a saner pace.

…..

The boys stepped though the door fifteen minutes later and stopped. "Wha-?" John started, his eyebrows scrunched together in confusion.

"What?" we all asked in unison, looking up at them.

We each had five cards in our hands, sitting around the low coffee table that had been set in the room. A mountain of sweets was piled in the middle. I had a green sun visor pulled down over my eyes and a chocolate cigarette sticking out of the side of my mouth.

"What are you guys even doing?" Monk asked from the doorway, not daring to come towards our little gathering of women.

"Playing poker. What does it look like?" Ayako asked, throwing her cards down, "I fold."

"Three of a kind," Masako immediately said, spreading her cards across the table for all to see with a smirk.

"Straight," November said proudly, spreading her cards in an arc and grinning like the demon that was her great-grandfather.

"My lovelies, this game has been decided," I said, flicking up my hat with a grin, slamming my hand down and spreading my cards, "Royal freakin' Flush."

"Dammit!" Ayako and November cried. Masako shook her head from where it lay on the table in defeat. "Mai, you suck," she muttered.

"Better luck next time girls," I said, pulling my prize towards me and into a draw string pouch, "This is going to get me through my last weeks of pregnancy since I'm not allowed to indulge my cravings right now."

The boys were still standing in the doorway, watching the exchanges with varying degrees of amusement and confusion. "Why are you playing poker instead of working?" Naru asked, readily oblivious to the already built shelves.

"Hey! We did our part! You guys were the ones moving slow. The shelves are built if you haven't noticed," I said smugly, nodding with the rest of the girls and even Jamie who giggled.

"So they are. Well then, if you have so much free time, go see if you can sense anything and take a thermometer with you. Check the temperatures of all the rooms where someone was taken from, which are marked on this list, and also take temperatures from a few rooms that haven't seen any activity," he said, holding a thermometer and a clipboard out to me.

I popped a butter scotch hard candy into my mouth. "Making your pregnant wife walk this huge place to do work. How uncouth," I said around the candy, taking the things he offered with a grin.

"Love you too," he said, kissing my lips lightly," Mm, you taste like butter scotch now."

"Now I know where I get the craving for it from," I whispered, kissing him again.

"Oh my god, you two! Do that somewhere else! Like in private!" Monk shouted, turning his back on us this his hands covering his eyes.

"What are you talking about? It's not anything dirty. I'm eating a butter scotch candy," I said, my eyebrows scrunching together in confusion. What was his major malfunction?

"Are you sure about that?" Naru asked in my ear, grinning slyly.

"Don't be a pervert!" I shouted, hitting him on the arm with the clipboard and giggling before taking Jamie's hand and walking out the door, "Come on, Jamie. Let's go take a walk."

"Okay Aunt Mai!" he said happily, skipping alongside me.

November, Masako and Ayako caught up to me with sly grins twisting their features. "So, has anyone else noticed how much Naru's changed since we've met him?" Masako asked the group at large.

"Yeah, even I've noticed and I've only known him for three months!" November exclaimed, nodding vigorously.

"Nuh uh," Jamie shouted up at us, "Uncle Naru is the same!"

"You're so right. Naru is the same as ever," I said, smiling and hugging him, "Why are you brining this up?"

They ignored my question completely, continuing their conversation. "Not true, he's more open with his feelings, only towards you though and only around us. Remember our first case together? You were the only one he showed that he was angry at himself to. Then the next case he was like a robot," Ayako said, pointing her finger as if she were a teacher.

The thermometer beeped and I took down the temperature of the first room. "Well, that is true, but I guess to you guys it's weird to see him show so much emotion. You should feel honored, it means he trusts you guys enough to let his guard down. I'm used to it though," I said, biting the end of my pencil as we went into the next room.

"What? You mean he's been like that for awhile? Well, I guess he would have to be for you guys to even think of having a baby," Ayako said with a thoughtful look, "He seems great with kids though, which most hot guys aren't."

"Shouldn't you be calling your hubby is hot and not a married man?" I asked with a teasing grin.

Ayako shrugged. "Just telling it like it is. You can't fudge facts, but you're right. My boyfriend is very handsome, nice and funny," she said with a smile.

"All of our hubbies are handsome and funny and great with kids," November said, picking up the thermometer as it beeped and read off the temperature.

"You're right. Everyone has changed in one way or another though. Even us and Lin. I guess being apart for three years and having children make that happen," I said somewhat sadly, a nostalgic feeling overcoming me.

"Yeah, I miss the old days even though I love these new ones," Masako said with a far off look.

"Remind me to show you my pictures when we get back to bass. Maybe we can make the boys blush," I told November with a bright smile, giggling at the thought.

She grinned back at me. "And you remind me to show you mine. I even have some from when Ciel was still human. I found them in his old study."

I laughed, thinking of the ones I had found. "Alright, will do."

We settled into some small talk as we went about our work. It wasn't long before we had finished and we were standing outside. "Let's go take a walk by the ocean," I suggested, breathing in its briny smell.

"Good idea. Maybe we'll 'sense' something," Masako said in case Naru was listening because somehow he always knew everything that happened during a case. With his little magical self.

"Don't say that or Mai's presence will end up jinxing us," Ayako joked, earning a slap to the arm from me.

We all laughed and grinned at each other. It was cold down by the water, but its beauty made up for that. Jamie giggled as squealed, staying just out of reach of the water when it rolled in and chasing it when it rolled out.

It was quiet between the for of us so it was easy to hear a little girl's voice whisper, "All of them, despicable. They never do what they promise."

I gasped, drawing my head up to stare down the coast at a little girl who was about six or seven and who's back was turned to us. It was badly burned. "What is that little girl doing? It's freezing cold today!" I cried.

The little girl that I was staring at had nearly, if not, white hair and fair almost translucent skin. A thin white sundress fluttered around her fragile form. I gagged, the smell of smoke, burned flesh and blood reaching me on the gentle breeze.

Masako's hands were covering her mouth and her eyes were wide. "That awful smell, is it coming from her?" she wondered, staring at the girl.

"What are you two talking about?" Ayako and November asked, staring at the two of us with worried eyes.

"You can't see her. So that mean sh-she's a ghost," I stuttered, turning my eyes back to the girl. She was staring at me with sad, pleading, but angry eyes. Her hair draped over one side of her face as blood ran down that cheek. Dark red stains marred the once pretty dress. Black smudges covered her skin and blood ran down the inside of her thighs. "Men are despicable creatures. They can't be trusted. They won't save you even if they promise," she said in an angry voice before it became sad and pleading, "Help me. Please."

My back erupted in pain as she burst into flames bringing a wave of unconsciousness over my mind.

**Hope you liked chapter 34 ^-^ I had a request from another reader to make it longer so that's what I tried to do. It's a bit longer, but if not as long as you like I am deeply sorry ***bows deeply* **Look forward to the next chapter and review please! You guys are seriously the ones that keep me going!**


	35. Chapter 35: Channeling Mother?

**So here you go, the next chapter. I had some trouble writing this one, so I'm sooooo sorry that it took me this long to get it out. Just heads up, my chapters will become 4 days apart so I get into a schedule for school. School for me starts on the 15****th**** of this month. Btw, my birthday is on the 19****th****! I might have something special for you guys then, but I can't promise anything.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ghost Hunt**

Chapter 35: Channeling Mother?

Mai's POV:

"_Abram, where are you? I need help. I'm lost. Where are you? I need you Abram!" the little girl, Amber I think it was, shouted in my mind._

_My eyes snapped open, wandering around the dark plain of a dream. It was silent except for the quiet echo of the girl's shout as it got further away. A dream had never been eerie before, but this one was._

_It was a long time before Gene's hand finally came into view, reaching down to help me to my feet. I took it, asking, "Where were you? I was getting worried."_

"_Sorry, the little girl really doesn't like men so it took me awhile to get into your dream this time around," he said with an apologizing smile, scratching the back of his head._

_I nodded my head in understanding. "Gene, is the reason she can't move on because she can't find Abram?"_

"_I believe so, but it might also be because she can't find her remains. Like me, though now I choose to stay behind," he said, trailing off at the end and not looking at me._

_I ignored that last part and instead continued with my questions. "If that's the case, then what are you going to show me this time?" I asked, looking around for a hint of scene._

_Gene chuckled. "Mai, I'm not the one who picks what you see. I'm just guiding you through them until you are able to do it on your own."_

_Before I could retort, a scene materialized in front of me. The little girl stood next to a bed, but this time she was wound free except for the burn on her back. In it the bed, there was another little girl with curly black hair._

_Amber reached out a hand and stroked the little girl's hair. "Men are despicable. They never protect girls, only hurt them, so I must protect them," she whispered, bending forward and placing a gentle kiss on the girl's forehead. "Come find me," she whispered, her red eyes trained on me before both Amber and the girl disappeared._

…..

I sat u quickly on the couch, grounding my teeth against the pain that shot through my back. Instantly, someone's hands were around my shoulders, supporting me so I didn't fall back.

"Mai?" Naru asked quietly, looking at me with worried eyes as he crouched in front of me.

"She's done it again. Amber kidnapped someone else," I whispered, holding tight to one of his hands, "She wants us to find her."

As if they sensed what we were talking about, a frantic young mother with black hair burst through the door followed closely by Sai. She was sobbing hysterically. "My daughter! The ghost took my daughter! Please find my baby!" se sobbed, covering her face with her hands.

"We will, we definitely will," I told her, holding out a hand that she took while still rubbing her eyes with the other, hiccupping. She couldn't have been more then three or four years older then me, five at most. I drew her into a hug. "We'll find her, we will. She's going to be perfectly fine."

"Thank you! Thank you so much!" she sobbed before November led her back out with a kind smile.

"So what are you going to do about this?" Sai asked, looking angry instead of scared for the young girl.

"What do you think?" I asked angrily before Naru could open his mouth, "You are going to go get the roster of guests starting from the first kidnapping, and highlighting the ones that checked in yesterday. And we are going to search for the girl."

He looked taken aback. No doubt he expected me to have no answer. "You only need their names?" he made it a question.

"No, we need their age, room number and gender as well," Naru said with his signature holier-than-thou tone, catching on to my train of thought quickly, "The quicker you get them for us, the faster we solve this case, understand?"

Sai glared daggers at Naru, turning on his heel and sauntering out. His mangled pride dragged itself behind him. Only seconds after he had slammed the door shut, Julie burst in, waving a stack of papers.

"Here, I have the roster," she gasped, passing it to Naru before bending over with her hands resting on her knees.

"What? How…?" I stammered, looking between her and the papers in my fiancé's hands.

"I thought you might ask for them and decided to wait until you asked my brother so that it got him out of your hair for awhile," she breathed, sitting down hard on the floor.

I grinned at her, sitting straighter on the couch. "Thanks Julie, I owe you one."

"Will you help us with the search? We need more hands then just the ones we have," Naru said, glancing up at her from the papers.

"Sure," she said with a bright smile.

"Alright, well, I guess we should get going," I said, standing up with some help from Ayako.

"Oh, no you don't, Mai. You're staying here and resting," Naru said, putting his hands on my shoulders and applying light pressure to try and force me to sit back down. That wasn't going to happen.

"You just said we needed more help and if you're staying here to watch the kids and go over that information, then we'd have even less hands!" I cried indignantly, resisting the pressure, "Plus, I'm the only one who knows where and how everything has happened, and only Masako and I can see Amber."

Naru sighed, leaning his forehead against mine. "You make it very hard to make an argument against you," he said.

"I know," I chirped, giving his a swift kiss before escaping out the door.

…..

"We should split up," Monk suggested. We were standing in the foyer, deciding on what would be the best and quickest way to search and where.

We all nodded in agreement. "I call Monk!" Yasu shouted, grabbing Monk's arm playfully.

"Ugh, you choose a man over me? Fine, then I choose Mai. She's my new lover," November said, latching onto my arm and bringing her lips close to my ear. By the way everyone's, except for Lin's and my, faces burned red, she had a seductive grin and a devilish look in her eyes.

"I choose Masako then," Ayako said, a teasing smile creeping onto her face as she looked over at Masako.

John smiled good-naturedly. "I guess that leaves Lin, Julie and myself. Mai, where should we start searching first?" he asked, turning to me.

"Uh, I think it'd be good for one team to search the attic and another to search the basement, if they have them. Those two teams should also check the bedrooms of their corresponding floors. Attic to 2nd floor, basement to 1st floor. The other two, meaning November and me, and John, Lin and Julie, will search outside. Lin, John, Julie, you take the forest. November and I will take the coast. Men, under no circumstanced are you allowed to interact in any way with female children, got it? Whether they're teens or under ten," I said, giving orders like my mother used to while on the job. Maybe I was channeling her. I giggled to myself earning some worried glances.

I clapped my hands together, calling, "Chop, chop! Let's get moving! Daylight's a' wasting! You guys can decide who's taking which floors. I could really care who takes which."

With that, we went in our separate directions. Yasu and Monk stayed on the first floor while Masako and Ayako took to the stairs. Did they split like that because basements are scarier than attics? Honestly, I thought both were equally scary.

**And there you have it my peeps, chapter 35. Hope you liked it, I didn't because it took me forever to write. For some reason, I've had a hard time coming up for chapters for this case. Maybe I'm just getting slow because school will be starting soon and the story will be over in another several cases, makes me sad. Don't worry though, I'm working on another Ghost Hunt fanfic that will be started after this one is over. I'm thinking about putting up another Soul Eater one, kind of a sequel to Instinct, to show what happened to Kidd and Black*Star.**

**Hope you stay tuned for the next chapter and review please!**


	36. Chapter 36: Apples Have Feelings?

**I am so sorry, I accidentally called Naru Mai's fiancé in the last chapter, sorry, my mistake. I've been really scatter brained lately. Anyway, I think the next chapter will be that last for this case.**

**Disclaimer: I will never own Ghost Hunt except in my overly creepy/weird dreams.**

**Hope you enjoy this chapter. The last part was fun to write. Also, remember to review at the end ;D**

Chapter 36: Apples Have Feelings?

Mai's POV:

We walked outside, November still hanging off of me like a crazy little monkey. "November, you are really **really** heavy especially with me being pregnant. Please get off," I groaned.

"Sorry," she sang, jumping off of me.

We were quiet then, walking down the coast. I watched with muted horror as visions of what had happened to Amber played out in front of me down the coast. Then something caught my eye. More of the men were moving another man, Abram, towards a cave. They came out of the forest at a slow gate, dragging the man.

Amber was turned away, to busy screaming in pain. The man pinning her to the ground was ginning maliciously at the other man.

I ran after the men with Abram, bypassing Amber because I already experienced what she'd been through. She had experienced the worst kind of pain. Not the pain that comes that comes from physical mutilation, but emotional pain.

She had to suffer through so much pain while she was dying. Both physical and emotional, but I can't think about that right now! I have to find her bones and the little girl!

November was far behind me by now. "Mai! Wait up! Don't run off by yourself! Naru's going to kill me if you do!" she shouted behind me and then gasping to herself, "How can a four month pregnant woman even run so fast?"

I wasn't even winded by the time I reached the cave, even though it should have been harder to run on sad then pavement, but who cares! It was pitch black inside. Behind me lightning flashed like a warning and thunder rolled angrily. It was still far off in the distance, but if I wanted to find Amber and Abram, I had to do it **now**.

The small flashlight that Naru had forced me to start carrying at all times came out of my pocket to say hello to the world, shining its light into the unforgiving cave. My steps echoed off the walls as I made my way slowly into the cave.

Sobbing bounced back at me off of the back wall. I sped up my pace and soon came to find the small form of the little girl. She looked unharmed as far as my flashlight could show me, but that didn't stop me from asking, "Are you okay?"

The girl's head snapped up. Her mouth opened to answer me, a smile spreading across her little face, but before any sound came out she disappeared into thin air. I just hope she turned up where someone could find her. "You've found her. Now find me. Find Abram," Amber's voice called to me quietly from down a side corridor. Her voice changed and she was suddenly screaming at me, "Why do you help them?"

I scurried down the corridor, desperate to find Amber and Abram's remains and finally put them to rest.

…..

Team's POV:

Naru sat in the base staring at the roster with angry eyes. "What's the connection? Mai said that the spirit hates me, but then why didn't the girls disappear when these men were here?" Naru asked himself, tracing over the names with a steady finger, "How old did Mai say those men looked in her dream?" Reflexively, Naru glanced up at the screens before snatching something potentially dangerous from Jamie.

That's when Yasu, Monk, Ayako and Masako burst into the room. Monk and Ayako were fighting per usual while Monk dodged Ayako's blows. Masako was blushing furiously at a probably more then inappropriate joke that Yasu was telling her animatedly.

Naru sighed in annoyance before pushing his papers away. He wouldn't be able to work properly while worrying about Mai and the twins. So instead, he turned towards the others, clearing his throat and glaring pointedly at Yasu. This made Yasu giggle at his joke.

"Have you found her yet?" Naru asked, not in the mood for them to beat around the bush. Everyone jumped at lightning flashed outside.

"Uh, no. She wasn't in any of the places we checked," Ayako informed him.

"We had zero luck!" Yasu cried, making his fingers into a round zero.

Naru sighed again, turning back to the monitors. The others took seats on the couches and proceeded to supply the babies with the attention they had been patiently waiting for that had not been given by their work-a-holic uncle.

It wasn't long after that when they all heard three sets of running footsteps. "Naru, we found her! She's unharmed!" Julie cried as Lin flung the door open.

John came in, the girl resting on his back, fast asleep. All four of them were soaked to the bone. It must have started raining soon after the lightning and thunder started up.

"It suddenly started pouring, so we thought it might be a good idea to head back inside. That's when we found her passed out on the steps," John explained as he gingerly laid her down on the couch, "But…where's Mai and November? We'd thought they'd be back by now since it must have started raining on the coast first."

Naru stared at him in horror as e realized that something was extremely wrong. Yasu must have had the same idea because they both bolted out the door at the same time, intercepting November half way down the beach.

She was sobbing hysterically. "I can't find her! She ran off and I followed her into a cave and now I can't find her!" she cried miserably, clinging to the front of Yasu's shirt.

Naru bolted for the cave she had pointed at, sprinting against the rain and wet sand that threatened to trip him up. He fought to drag his own small flashlight out the he always had for occasions like this, cautiously creeping his way into the opening.

He came to the back wall, running his hand over it frantically. "How could she have disappeared in such a small cave?" he thought, turning a full 360 degrees before the light of his flashlight caught the opening of a small corridor to his left.

He took the corridor at a fast jog, coming to a small circular room. In the middle, Mai had collapsed, her flashlight gleaming off the far wall.

"Mai!" Naru shouted, running to her side and picking her up. She was breathing, and thankfully not bleeding. Today was their lucky day!

"…found Amber and Abram," Mai murmured, sighing contentedly in her sleep.

Naru frowned down at her, picking up the flashlight again. He swept in around the room, coming to rest on a pair of skeletal remains at the far end of the room.

…..

Mai's POV:

I groaned, slowly opening my eyes to the bright lights of base. What had happened? I remember finding Amber and Abram's remains, but then everything went black. Maybe I passed out?

Slowly, I sat up. The base was bustling with its usual activity. Yasu and November were being dirty. Ayako and Monk were arguing. On the couch across from me, Masako and John were entertaining Makoto with Jamie and Mizuki. Naru and Lin were naturally watching the monitors.

Monk caught an apple that Ayako had thrown at him from across the room, taking a huge chunk out of it. "Hey! Apples have feeling too, you know!" Yasu cried indignantly, completely serious.

Monk looked at him and then back at the apple in his hand. "So Mr. Apple, how does it feel to be in my stomach acid?" he asked just as seriously.

Jamie came up behind him, putting his finger to his lips to signal us to be quiet. Even Lin and Naru had turned around to watch the little boy's antics and see what he was going to say. Jamie silently giggle, then in a quiet voice he said, "It's dark."

Monk stared at the apple in shock, his mouth dropping open, before he screamed, "Oh my God!" and threw the apple out the window.

We all burst out laughing. Even Lin and Naru cracked smiles at the child's little joke. He giggled, running over to Lin with a huge giggling grin. Silently, I thanked whatever god or goddess that watched over us that Naru was so thorough and that that incident had been caught on tape by the camera looking into base.

**Hope you liked it! I didn't actually start writing this till yesterday at around 11 p.m. and didn't finish it till 3 this morning. What I do for my readers. I hope you love me.**

**I thank the Writing God for inspirational foods and thin mint Girl Scout cookies. *bows at the feet of the Writing God***

**Anyway, review for me please! It'll make me feel so much better :D**


	37. Chapter 37: Pictures of the Past

**Here's chapter 37! Hope you like it and think its somewhat funny! I found out the night that I wrote this that the shower is the god of inspiration. I'm telling you, I think of everything in there. The next chapter will definitely be the end of this case so basically, this chapter was just for fun.**

**So, you know how I said Naru and Mai were 2 years apart at the beginning of this whole thing? Well, it turns out they actually are only one year apart *sigh* See what happens when you reread the manga? And ignore the way I totally screwed up the months of Mai's pregnancy and depending on your answers to my question at the end, just pretend that Naru was born on September 1st**** and not September 19****th****. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ghost Hunt**

Chapter 37: Pictures of the Past

Mai's POV:

The laughter died down after a good thirty minutes which was how long it took John to explain that it had been Jamie talking and not his apple. Then, November gasped, startling everyone as se swiveled around to face me.

"Mai! You told me to remind you about the picture!" she cried, jumping up.

My face lit up as I remembered my promise to her. "Can you go get mine please? I don't think getting up would be the brightest idea for me right now," I asked apologetically, glancing down at my still shaky legs.

She nodded vigorously, bounding to the door. "My album is in the bottom of my bag!" I called as she ran down the hall.

She rapped on the wall of the girl's room next door twice to tell me that she had heard me. There was a lot of sounds like stuff being thrown around and a loud crash before November sprinted back in.

"What was that crash?" Ayako asked hesitantly, kind of afraid to hear the answer.

"A tree landing on someone's car outside," she said with a bright smile, "Personally, I hope it fell on Sai's care. That would make my day."

We all nodded in agreement. None of us liked Sai. For me, it was mainly because he acted like Natsume and that was one memory I did **not **want to revisit at any cost. We'll just have to wait and see about that one.

November slowly made her way over to me, clutching an album to her chest. It was large, about three inches thick. She handed me the album before plopping down next to me. It was pastel purple with gold letters on the front that spelt, "SPR Memories. Property of Mai Taniyama."

Everyone crowded around the small love seat. Even Naru and Lin came over to look as I opened the front cover of the album. The first picture sent everyone into a fit of giggles. It was from our first case together. Naru was supporting his weight on the table full of monitors, leaning forward slightly. I was standing next to him, looking at him with a confused expression.

What made everyone giggle was that fact that someone had pointed an arrow at Naru's butt and wrote, "One fine booty" next to it.

"This was from our very first case together," I explained to Yasu and November, "Ayako, I can't believe you did that!"

"Hey! You're the one who kept the picture!" Ayako cried indignantly, "And it was **your **friends who asked me for it."

"Doesn't change the fact that you took the picture and wrote that," Masako giggled. Ayako spluttered out an incoherent reply.

As I flipped through the pictures, people could shout out the case or activity they'd been doing. We stopped often to reminisce about those days. It wasn't till about 1/3 of the way through that we started laughing more and more. We even somehow roped Naru and Lin into laughing.

"I remembered this day. That client was horrible," Naru said as he pointed at a picture.

It was one of us all together. We were all squished onto one three-seater couch, grinning like fools as we were all shoved together. Madoka had even been there. She had been there to lecher Naru for a little bit and give information.

"Yeah, he was really terrible. Can you believe that her only gave us one couch and a table to work with?" I asked November incredulously, earning a shake of the head, "Yeah, it was funny because Naru and Lin had tried to claim seats first after we'd been running around the forest all day. Well, Monk and I decided that wasn't going to be so, so Monk pushed Naru over with his big butt so he could be next to the arm of the couch and I sat between him and Lin. Well, Yasu decided that he wanted a piece of that too so he sat down between Lin and me, making it tight. John was just going to take the floor, but Yasu wouldn't have that. He pulled poor John between him and myself so that I was basically in Naru's lap. Then Yasu pulled Masako onto his and John's lap. Ayako had been the only one left, but Monk solved that by squishing her between him and Naru except she was more in Monk's lap then anything. After that, Madoka ended up in Lin's lap with her legs slung over everyone else's, and Naru and I basically ended up spooning. The client's daughter was hilarious and took the picture." Everyone laughed again as I finished.

"What's this one from?" November asked, pointing a picture on the next page.

Her finger was pointing at a picture of all of them after they had gotten out of Urado's mansion. Masako and I were at the front of the group. Naru was behind me with Lin next to him and Madoka grinning next to him while Ayako and Monk stood behind Masako. John stood next to them with Yasu grinning next to John. We were all battered and some covered in blood, but we'd still had the picture taken anyway.

"That was after the Urado case. I've told you about that one," I said, receiving a sound of realization from November.

She giggled as she looked at the next picture. I didn't remember where it'd taken, but it was of me and Naru laughing into a kiss. My face lit up like the 4th of July and I slammed my hand over it.

"Uh, let's go to the next page," I said, quickly turning the page only to be more mortified. The next picture was of me and Natsume kissing. I groaned.

"Okay, who has a pair of scissors and a lighter?" Monk asked the group.

"Hold on Monk, watch. I'll just do this," I said, taking the picture and folding it in half so that only my face showed.

"Mai, what's that in your hand?" Yasu asked, pointing at my clenched hand in the photo.

"Oh, that's my locket that Naru gave me. I never liked Natsume being close to it," I explained, pursing my lips in confusion.

"Where is that locket anyway? I haven't seen it since I got back," Naru asked.

I looked at him, confused. "What are you talking about? It's right here," I said, pulling the locket out of the front of my shirt, "I never go anywhere without it."

They all nodded and then November was back at the pictures. "What the hell?" she laughed, her fingers pointing at a picture of Naru holding up boxers with little ghosties on them next to a Christmas tree.

"Oh, that was the Christmas before Naru and I got together," I laughed out, remembering what had happened, "I thought it'd be a hilarious gift. He got really embarrassed."

"No I didn't," Naru scoffed. I laughed.

"And this one?" November pointed to the next one.

In the picture, I was blushing furiously and screaming at people behind the camera. "Oh, that was because Yasu and I had given her condoms and other assorted items for her present," Monk laughed, a huge grin splitting his face, "Obviously, she didn't use them to well."

"I hate you Monk," I grumbled, turning the page and bursting out laughing.

The rest looked back at what I was laughing at and started laughing themselves. "When was this taken Mai?" Naru asked.

He was pointing at a picture of me, the one we were all laughing at. I was passed out on the floor, a laptop in front of me and papers with red markings all over them. My hair was pulled back in a ponytail, but was still extremely messy and my mouth was hanging open. I had dark bruises under my eyes and my clothes looked like they had been worn for several days. Beer cans and cookie bags littered the floor in a huge circle around me.

"Oh, that was after I finished my first novel. I was with my college friends who was helping me. After three all-nighters and the completion of my first novel, I passed out for a whole day. My editor thought it was hilarious," I said, laughing and scratching the back of my head.

Ayako gave me a disapproving look, but someone pointed at another picture before she could open her mouth. There were pictures of Naru and me drunk. My college friends and me messing around. Ones from when SPR went to England. Naru and me cuddling on the couch in the SPR office. Masako's pregnancy, month by month. Pictures of every couple in our team. Ayako and Monk fighting like always. Naru playing with little kids. Our whole group running from a pack of wolves. Even ones from when Gene, Naru and I were all little kids.

Then, there were ones from us girls playing poker and me playing strip poker with college friends. "Did you win that poker game?" Yasu asked with a sly grin, pointing at the strip poker ones.

I giggled. "Yeah, but not until they end when I was only in my underwear and bra. I got serious after they took my panty hoes. They never stood a chance. Poor boys had to run home naked." I had a devilish grin splitting my face.

Masako shook her head. "That's horrible."

"But would have been hilarious to see," Ayako and November said in unison with twin like giggles.

"Oh, and don't I know it," I said and then stopped at the next picture. In it, I was sleeping while only wearing a blanket. At that one I glared at Naru. "I can't believe you took a picture of me like that."

Naru just shrugged and smirked. "Maybe you shouldn't sleep naked," he said smugly.

"Hey! That was your fault!" I shouted, setting my album down and getting up.

"How is what you sleep in my fault?" he asked.

"Because you're the one who took off my pajamas that night, or don't you remember?" I asked scathingly.

"Oh, I remember perfectly," he said, still smirking in amusement.

Monk jumped up, waving his hands. "Whoa! Whoa! Whoa! Stop right there! I don't need to here anymore of this!" he shouted.

"But we do!" November and Yasu cried, jumping up and grinning evilly.

Before we could get any further into the argument, Sai came in. "Everyone has been instructed not to go outside for the next hour," he said, looking at me who had Naru backed into a corner.

"Looks like its time to get our exorcism on," Monk said, standing up and loosening his shoulders. Then he left to go change with John right behind him.

I looked at Naru, startled. "You're going to exorcise Amber?" I asked incredulously.

"Its mainly to bring her out, but if my plan doesn't work or if Masako can't persuade her then we will have to resort to exorcism," he answered, placing a comforting hand against my cheek as tears sprang to my eyes.

"Please, whatever we do, we have to make sure she's cleansed," I stammered, hiccupping, "Please, I can't bear to have her be exorcised. She's already been through enough pain." I was soon sobbing with everybody crowded around me and Sai watching jealously from the doorway.

**Okay, so here's the question I mentioned at the beginning. I'm wondering if you guys want a little Christmas thing for the group. If not then we can just ignore the thing about Naru's birthday and we'll have skipped Christmas and New Years all together. So review and tell me what you want me to do :D**


	38. Chapter 38: A Cleansing?

**Okay, so after you guys answered my question, I have decided that we'll pretend Naru's birthday is on September 1st**** instead of September 19****th****, and on popular demand, the team will be having a Christmas celebration. It's not to long, but I hope you guys like it.**

**Disclaimer: I, sadly, do not own Ghost Hunt T^T**

Chapter 38: A Cleansing?

Mai's POV:

We made our way out to the beach after I had calmed down enough to stop crying. Though I was still on the brink of bursting into tears again, I refused to do it before the situation warranted it. The grey clouds still roiled above us, reflecting my mood perfectly.

John stood a little ways away from us in his robes. He glanced over his shoulder at Naru who signaled him to begin. He nodded, turning back as he began speaking. "Heavenly God…please allow us to worship you. Your soul becomes our heaven and the earth. In the beginning was the word…"

As John continued, the temperature around them seemed to take a nose dive. The mist off the water rolled in around our ankles. Masako gasped before fainting back into Julie's arms.

"Masako!" John cried, running over to us and touching her face gently, "What happened?"

"I…I don't know. She just finished," I stuttered, but as I said that she cringed away from John's hand, clutching onto my shirt.

"Why are you helping him to get rid of me? I didn't do anything bad. I was just protecting them, is that bad?" Masako asked in a 7-year-olds voice, looking up at me with crimson eyes.

November seemed to grasp the situation first, stepping up beside me. "We're not trying to get rid of you," she said softly in a gentle voice.

"That's right. We just want to help you. It's not good for you t linger in this world. You need to move on," I told her with the same tone November had used, "As Masako says, just look for the light."

Tears filled those red eyes, spilling over. "But I'm scared! Those men will be waiting for me!" she cried.

"No they won't, Abram will," Ayako said, resting a comforting hand on her shoulder.

Masako's face went hard as anger filled her eyes. "No, he won't! He didn't come save me like he promised. He left me to die by the hand of those men!" she shouted angrily into my chest as she buried her face into it, "Men are evil, vile creatures! They never do what they promise and only hurt you!"

"That's not true!" I told her sternly. She startled, looking up at me in confusion. "Abram wanted to come save you, he did! He wanted to save you! He did! So don't hate him, please. He loved you." My voice had ended pleadingly, imploring her with tears clouding my vision.

"He was…coming to save me?" she whispered before Masako's eyes darkened back to black and fluttered shut.

Now, Amber materialized in front of us. "Where is Abram? Do you know? Please tell me where he is!" she pleaded, tears streaming down her small face. Again, she was not the wounded and bloody girl she had been the first time I'd seen her. She was…beautiful.

"Is that her? Is that the ghost who has been disturbing my business?" Sai yelled, storming out of the in towards us.

"Mr. Misato, I am going to have to ask you to leave the premises this moment. Amber, the spirit, has not been exorcised yet," Naru told him sternly. I stood protectively in front of her, glaring at Sai.

"No, I will not. She needs to leave or be exorcised now. I will not have her be terrorizing my customers any longer," he growled, stepping in front of me, but staring at Amber, "So leave, now. We don't want you here."

Amber looked like she was about to start wailing. "I-I didn't do anything bad. I was just protecting them. They needed protecting," she said, pleading her case.

"No, your ruining my business. Now leave, shoo, you nuisance," he said, stretching his hand out so that he could swat her away, coming very close to touching her before she began to scream.

"Don't touch me! Don't touch me you filthy man!" she screamed causing Sai she fly back from a burst of energy from her, "Where's Abram? He said he'd protect me from all men!"

"He's right here," Naru spoke up, stepping forward and holding a hitogata high. He tossed it into the air like he had done on the case with the doll. And also like that case, the hitogata morphed into the golden form of Abram Brown.

"Abram!" Amber cried happily, holding out her arms to him. He enveloped her in a huge bear-like hug, sighing as he said her name lovingly, "Amber."

"Thank you. Thank you so much! Oh, I missed you so much Abram," she sobbed as she and Abram disappeared in a shower of golden sparks.

The sparks faded away slowly, only to be replaced by something else. Something cold and white.

"Snow," I breathed as I looked into the sky with tears streaming down my face, "It's snowing."

…..

***a few days later***

"Baby mama, how have you been?" someone cried as they burst through the door of the office causing everyone there to jump to the ceiling, "Oh and Merry Christmas Eve!"

"S-Suzuki, what are you doing here?" I yelled at my publisher through a fit of coughing from having choked on my tea.

"Oh, sorry darling, did I startle you? I came to pick up the final draft of your second book," she chirped cheerfully, bouncing over to me to me in a green and red dress the just barely covered her panties.

I raised my eyebrow at her. "Well, you sure are…festive," I mumbled, getting up and walking over to my desk where I rummaged around in a drawer. "Naru, do you know where my manuscript is?" I asked Naru in English, closing the drawer and opening another.

"I think you left it in my office. You were reading over it in just a little while ago," he answered me, also in English, grabbing a glass orb from Jamie as he picked it up from the box.

"Thanks," I called, running into his office and picking it up front where it lay on the desk. I sighed in relief.

"So, is that baby daddy? He's one handsome piece of work and I must say, he seems great with kids," Suzuki said, jerking her thumb back at Naru with a flirtatious grin on her face.

I grinned back, pushing the manuscript into her chest and out of Naru's office. "His is baby daddy, but he's also my husband," I told her, shutting the office door quietly behind me, "He tries to hide that fact that he actually likes kids and that he's great with them, he finds them intriguing, but when he's with them, it just shines through."

"Woman, put a shutter over that shining love of your's, it's so bright that it's blinding me," Suzuki said jokingly, covering her eyes and laughing.

"Sorry," I said with a grin, "Anyway, would you like to stay? We're getting ready to put up decorations."

"No, I don't want to intrude on your party with your teammates. I was just going to drop this off and then I have a date with a really hot man," she said, winking and grinning at me, "I'm hoping for tonight to be quite eventful if you catch my drift and I can tell that your's will be too. Even after all of you go home."

I blushed deeply. "Oh my goodness, don't talk like that! There are little ears in the room!" I whisper/cried, avoiding eye contact, "You are as bad as Naru!"

"Oh, so you admit that your nights are eventful," she giggled, bumping hips with me suggestively.

"I never said any such thing!" I cried indignantly, swinging out at her with my face turning even a darker shade of red making her laugh.

"Okay, okay, I guess I'll get going then," she said, dancing out of reach. She was just opening the door when she called over her shoulder, "I look forward to reading all about how 'eventful' your nights really are through this book." She was waving my manuscript through the air.

Somehow, I managed to turn and even darker shade of red. "You're horrible, Suzuki! I hate you!" I shouted at her as she giggled manically before escaping.

When I turned around Naru was smirking and everyone had raised eyebrows. "Don't you dare say a word," I warned darkly to Naru who raised his hands as if in surrender.

"Not a word," he said, mimicking zipping and locking his lips and throwing the key away.

"Oh, I am so reading your first book now," Ayako said with a grin.

"I've already started reading it," Yasu said smugly.

"I've already read it," Yasu, November, Masako and John said together. They glanced at each other before grinning and laughing.

Ayako's smile widened mischievously. "Was there anything juicy in it?" she asked, eagerly scooting closer to Masako.

Masako shrugged, eyeing me as she said, "Not particularly." I could tell by the tone of her voice that no one would believe her.

"Oooooh, Mai's all grown up writing adult books," Monk crooned.

And still I blushed harder. "Am not!" I shouted, "Christmas is not a time for dirty thoughts! Let's get these decorations up!" I stomped over to the radio, turning up the volume and falling easily into the beat of the music.

The rest of our day was spent laughing and making fun of each other as we danced around the office, setting up decorations. I even pulled Naru into a couple dances, soon finding out that he was actually quite skilled at dancing. None of us left the office until midnight.

***next morning***

"Merry Christmas everyone!" I shouted as the rest of SPR bust through the doors of the office at only seven in the morning. I was nursing a mug of hot chocolate, watching the lights of our Christmas tree blink while resting against Naru's chest.

"Oh come on! How did you get here before us? It's seven for crying out loud! Aren't pregnant women supposed to sleep for like 12 hours a day?" Monk cried exasperatedly, throwing his hands up in the air.

I laughed. "My sleep schedule has been really screwed up lately. That's why I end up falling asleep at work much more often now. We've actually been here since four this morning."

"Wow, my sleeping schedule wasn't even that messed up," Masako said, her hand covering her mouth. I could almost see the wheels turning in her head and knew that she would know I was pregnant with twins soon.

"Anyway, I think Jamie is going to burst if we don't let him open his presents soon," I grinned, glancing over a Jamie who was bouncing nervously on the balls of his feet. He was grinning at me in anticipation.

"Right. I guess we should start then," Monk said with a smile, going over to the tree and picking up the first present.

By the end of the day, around midnight again, we were all finally getting ready to go home. I leaned heavily on Naru, watching Jamie still playing with his toys.

"Thanks for this," I murmured to Naru, leaning my head on his shoulder, "This was really great and fun, and thank you for the great gift."

"I didn't do anything. We all just spent Christmas together, like a family," Naru said, leaning his cheek against my head.

"No, you did do something. You brought us all together, from the very beginning. You gave me a family," I said, slowly, my consciousness slipping slowly into a deep sleep.

Naru was quiet for a few moments. "Merry Christmas, Mai," he finally whispered, kissing the top of my head.

"Merry Christmas," I murmured.

**So far, this is absolutely the longest chapter I have written for this story. It actually surprised me how much space I can take up when I'm typing the first time through, but I still love writing long hand.**

**Yeah, I know, I'm a dinosaur, but dinos are awesome which automatically makes me awesome :D**

**Anyway, hope you guys liked it enough to review for me *wink* *wink***

**P.S.- I hope you guys like the personality of Mai's publisher. I had one hell of a time writing about her, I almost started laughing at some of the things I could see her saying to embarrass Mai.**


	39. Chapter 39: A Stalker?

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ghost Hunt *sits in corner sobbing***

Chapter 39: A Stalker?

"Mai darling, how's the baby?" Luella asked, bursting into the office, a huge bag hanging off of her arm.

Naru and Mai still hadn't told anybody that they were having twins yet, besides Ayako who had guessed. Now, they were thanking our lucky stars that they hadn't. "Oh fine. The morning sickness hasn't been as bad lately," Mai told her with a smile, clutching a steaming cup of tea in her hands as she swirled a candy around her mouth and leaned back into Naru's chest on the couch.

Madoka chose that moment to rush out of Lin's office, a mischievous smile plastered to her face. "Luella, my partner in crime, how have you been?" she cried, flinging her arms around the other woman.

Jamie ran out of the office, laughing as he ran towards the two. Lin came out, a small on his face as he shook his head and took a seat on the opposite couch.

"Just marvelous!" Luella shouted, hugging the other woman back, "Look what I got! Aren't they just adorable? I got two girls and one boys one because I just know November's baby will be a darling little girl and those two haven't told us what they're having so I just got both. What do you think? Aren't they just cute?" She was holding up two identical blue dresses and a little blue boy's sailor out.

"They are, they are!" Madoka shouted enthusiastically.

Martin sighed, coming to sit down. He knew they were going to be a long time. The door opened again, bringing with it a flurry of snow and the rest of the SPR group with their baby carriers.

"Hi everyone!" Mai shouted, not moving from her very warm place on the couch.

"Hey Mai," they all called back, but Yasu took it a bit further.

"Aw Mai, how could you cuddle with anyone other then your loving older brother?" he asked, faking dejection.

"Because unlike my 'loving older brother', my husband isn't a pedophile," Mai said with an innocent smile.

Just like that, they lapsed into comfortable conversation. I was teasing November about how she was beginning to show when the door burst open for a third time this evening. Mai swore, the next group that unceremoniously slammed that door open would be cleaning the whole office.

With the third door burst, a group of 'men' tumbled through the door. Men being a subjective term to be discussed later since all those 'men' spilled in shouting, "Mai!"

"What the **hell** do you guys want now? I swear, if you fuck up my evening I'm going o kill all six of you," Mai growled, stopping the group in its tracks.

They stared at the whole group in surprise. Naru curled around her possessively. Lin and Martin with black expressions. Ayako and Monk, Masako and John with baby carriers at their feet. Madoka and Luella cooing over baby clothes. Jamie sitting on Lin's lap with a curious expression. November and Yasu crushed into one arm chair.

All of their merry-making has ceased the moment the boys had called Mai's name. Now they were all staring at boys with varying intensities on glares and emotions.

"Mai has a male harem!" Yasu cried, breaking the tension.

Mai sighed in exasperation before glaring up at the boys. "Tamasine, Yukio, Kaname, Rya, Ichiro, Kuri, what do you want?" I asked slowly and deliberately, pronouncing each word and name completely with space between.

They were quiet for a second before shouting in unison, "We have a case for you!"

Mai smiled sweetly at the boys, a muscle twitching in her jaw. "Actually boys, you have a case for m boss, not me, and if this is another sham I will personally murder all of you," she ground out from between her teeth.

The six boys flinched, their eyes widening in terror. Mai scared the shit out of them. "N-Natsume s-said something about you h-having a boss now," Tamasine stuttered.

There was a snapping sound that got everyone searching for its source except for Mai who was still smiling at them. She slowly got up, letting see how big she had gotten for the first time.

"Boys, if you ever so much as whisper that name in my presence again, I will kill you," she said, still smiling, "I don't give a damn what that jackass told you, you wait until I tell you. Got it?"

"Yes ma'am!" they shouted, snapping to attention and saluting her.

"Now, tell me, what else did that man tell you? Now remember, I'm 5 months pregnant and very temperamental so I might punch you if I don't like what you tell me," Mai said, cracking her knuckles.

"Honestly Mai, please don't do that or you'll screw up your hands," Naru said softly, coming up behind her and grabbing her hands.

She looked over her shoulder with a soft smile before turning expectantly to the six boys. Little did she know that Naru was glaring at them over her head.

They squeaked. "W-well, he told us that you were pregnant with some…uh…scumbag's child. His words, not ours!" Rya said hesitantly, not wanting to tell her.

"Oh really? And did he also tell you that I was married to that 'scumbag'?" she asked, smile still in place.

"H-he, uh, m-might have m-mentioned it…" Yukio stuttered, already backing up. The rest of SPR had taken shelter in Naru's and Lin's office and also the kitchen.

"Oh, how nice. Honey, it looks like I've got myself a stalker," Mai said, looking back at Naru with a wide grin.

"Now, let me make this clear. I will not even consider your case if you ever speak to this stalker again or if any of you are stalking my wife," Naru said with a warning smile that didn't reach his eyes. Instead, they were cold and told them that if he killed them, their bodies would never be found and he wouldn't even care.

"Now that that's all cleared up, what was that case about?" Madoka asked, clapping her hands and coming out of Lin's office.

The six boys visibly relaxed at the sight of such a pretty, normal looking lady. Then they relaxed even more as the rest of SPR filled the space. Naru and Mai sat back down slowly, mainly because of Mai. November bustled off to make tea, Yasu following close behind with the dirty dishes.

"The case?" Luella prompted, standing there with her hands on her hips. Martin stood behind her with the same look as Naru on his face.

"Oh, right! Well, you see, we were inspecting an old insane asylum that is thinking about re-opening as a mental health facility. While we were there, we could hear the footsteps of many people and screaming. Most of them sounded like they were in agony," Tamasine began, taking a hesitant seat on the sofa opposite the married couple, Kuri sitting next to him, "We also heard children calling for their mothers. There was a child's wing of the asylum. It was quite large."

"Does the owner know that you're asking for our services?" Naru asked, putting the tips of his fingers together in front of his mouth, "In any case, this just seems like a hoax that wouldn't effect the business once the building is reopened."

"I'm the owner. Um, well, whenever we try to renovate, the renovators always get scared off. They said something about voices, visions and an apparition. I thought it might be something wrong with the building and that's why we were inspecting it once more," Kuri said quietly, staring at his hands, "Please, help me. You're my last hope."

He stood up and bowed deeply. His chestnut hair fell into his face, covering startling green eyes from view. Out of that whole group, Kuri was the only one that Mai didn't mind, even liked. To a point, he reminded her of John.

Naru and Mai shared a look before they turned back. Mai actually had a real, heartwarming smile on her face that made all the men, except for Kuri, blush. "We'll take the case. Write down the address here and expect us by noon tomorrow," Naru said, sliding a pen and paper over towards Kuri.

His head jerked up, a bright smile on his face. "Thank you! Thank you so much Mr…uh," Kuri said, looking at Mai for help as he quickly scrawled down the address.

"Shibuya or Davis, which ever you prefer," she said with a kind smile, getting up and walking with the six boys to the door.

"Mr. Shibuya, thank you so much. By the way Mai, congrats on your pregnancy and marriage. We'll talk later about all of it," Kuri said with a smile, hugging her which she gladly returned, "but it always seems like you get the good ones. Why are all the good ones other taken or straight?"

"Hey, I used to be the one saying the reverse of that. What happened to that foreigner?" she asked concernedly.

"Who knows? Who cares? In any case, I'm really happy for you," he said, hugging her and giving her a peck on the cheek.

"Thanks. We'll see you tomorrow. And you five, hovering on the fringes, if you leak one word of this to that man, start preparing your funerals," she said, turning to face the other five boys hovering close behind her.

They gulped before nearly throwing themselves out the door with a quick, "Bye!"

"Goodbye, Mai. See you guys tomorrow," Kuri said, stepping out the door with a wave of his hand.

Before he could close the door, she called, "Bye, Kuri!" When she turned around everyone was gawking at her. Well, almost everyone. "What?"

"W-what's was that?" Monk cried.

"Yeah, all the hugging and the kiss?" Ayako shouted next, "Is he an old boyfriend?"

"Hell no, he's not an ex-boyfriend. Definitely not Kuri. So, what's your guys' major malfunction?" Mai asked, reclaiming her seat against Naru's chest.

"Our 'malfunction' is that you're married and pregnant, and the fact that that guy was hugging and kissing you!" November shouted, "Plus, he was as hot as Naru! Sorry Yasu, but it's a true fact." She shrugged.

Mai burst out laughing. "Don't even think about that November. And it was only one kiss on the cheek," she chuckled.

"Whatever. He still did it and you were laughing," Masako said, getting into the conversation also after getting over the shock.

"He didn't mean any harm by it," Mai said casually, shrugging her shoulders as she shifted in her seat. Naru didn't seem bothered or threatened by it so she didn't know why the rest of them were.

"How do you know he didn't mean any harm? They all seemed like they were trying to get into your pants," Yasu said coolly, not really bothered by it either. He had a sly grin growing across his face that told Mai he already knew why it didn't mean any harm.

"How do I know, you ask? Isn't it obvious? It's because Kuri is gay. I thought that **was** obvious," Mai said, holding back a smile and laughter as she knew what their reactions would be.

"…WHAT?" they all cried except for Naru, Yasu and Lin.

**So there you have it, chapter 39. I just wanted to get this chapter up before school starts tomorrow and all my free time goes out the window.**

**I'm a Sophomore now! And I'll be turning 15 on the 19th**** which is in 4 days! Make my birthday a happy one by reviewing for me :D**


	40. Chapter 40: Welcome to Insanity

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ghost Hunt, but if someone would like to get me a birthday present… *wink* *wink* ;D**

Chapter 40: Welcome to Insanity

Mai's POV:

"Mai, are you alright?" John asked me once everyone had spilled out of the van and cars to wait for the other clients to arrive. Kuri had guided us up in his own car so we didn't get lost in all the snow.

"Yeah, sure, just that morning sickness is hitting me hard today," I said, scrubbing at my face and pulling at my collar, "Why is it so hot out here?"

"Mai, it's like a blizzard out here," Monk said incredulously, looking around at the snow covered ground as a wall of snow blew around us.

I shrugged. "Hot flashes don't care if it's snowing or not, dear old dad," I told him with a teasing grin.

"The snow looks like it's picking up so let me show you around while we wait for the other five idiots. I'll take you to your base," Kuri said, standing with the door to the building open.

I nodded and grabbed one of the heavier boxes. No one could tell the physical difference between the heavy and light boxes. I was going to pull my weight whether they liked it or not!

Naru watched my suspiciously as I grinned and made my way into the building with a spring in my step. Kuri grinned at me mischievously, knowing what I had done. He'd known me long enough to know every one of my little tricks, even if I was pregnant. That's where the team went wrong.

It wasn't long before we were all sitting in base, trying to stay warm, but that wasn't too hard since we were all beginning to get pissed. The other five boys still hadn't arrived yet. Everything was set up so Naru couldn't get angry at us.

"I'll go find the thermostat and turn on the heat. I'm freezing my balls off in here. I'd tell you to go back to the hotel, but it's a blizzard out there. I think we just missed it," Kuri told us, standing in the doorway, "Wanna come Mai? I know you must be dying with nothing to do."

Naru looked up from the monitors to watch me grab a thermometer and clipboard. "I'll go take temperature readings then too, so we don't have to leave base again," I told him as I kissed him on the lips before running over to Kuri, "Let's go and turn the heat on. I'm worried about the babies."

I glanced over my shoulder to where Monk and John were cradling Mizuki and Makoto against their chest in their jackets. Jamie sat cuddled on the couch between Yasu and November. We had decided that because men run a higher temperature them women usually. John and Monk had already fallen asleep.

"Always thinking about others, aren't you?" Lin asked, looking up from his laptop.

I grinned at him. "You know it," I told him with a grin, closing the door before walking down the hall with Kuri.

…..

"So how did **that** happen?" Kuri asked, jerking hid head back towards the base, "He is one hot puppy and last time I checked, you were socially inept at speaking to guys even slightly interested in you."

I giggled. "I'd love to see his face at you calling him a 'hot puppy'. I've known Naru for my whole life, literally."

"Oh, really now. That's very interesting. Okay then, so how did this and this happen?" he asked, pointing at my hand and extended stomach, "You're the last person I'd expect to get prego first out of our group."

I grinned and started to tell him everything, from the moment we had me for the 'first' time. First meaning when I met him in the old school house. Kuri was riveted by the story, laughing often and grinning the entire time and gasping at the appropriate moments.

"Well, I'm happy for you. You're really a cute couple. It's so sweet. Call me when you're going to give birth and I'll come cheer you on. I have a feeling Hot Puppy might faint. It's always the strong ones," he said, grinning wickedly at me as he adjusted the thermostat in the basement.

I jumped as I heard the heater start up. I breathed a sigh of relief, clutching at my chest, "That scared the crap outa me!"

"You are one skittery chickady," Kuri laughed, threading his arm through mine and pulling me back through the corridors and up stairs.

"I have a question," I said when we had gone up our fifth flight of stairs, "What the **hell** is an insane asylum doing with so many fucking stairs? It seems quite impractical." I was gasping for breathe, leaning my head against the wall.

"Mommy," several children called from down the hall.

I stood there for a moment, concentrating. Again, I heard children calling for their mothers. "Do you hear those children? Why are they here?" I asked Kuri in a whisper, sneaking down the hall.

Suddenly, children in identical dressing gowns rushed down the hall around me, glancing fearfully over their shoulders as they called for their mothers. Several doctors in white lab coats chased after them with huge needles and bloody scalpels. Blood stained the white of their coats.

One man caught a young girl of about twelve-years-old around the waist. "If you you struggle, I'll be forced to hurt you," he whispered with a leering and lying smile.

He brought the needle closer to her neck. Her grey eyes were round with fear, her mouth moving as if she was trying to speak, but nothing came out. She began to struggle harder, her mouth opening wide as if she were screaming.

The man scowled, bringing the scalpel against her throat. "Don't worry, this medicine will cure you. You'll be normal then," he whispered, shoving the needle deeper into her neck, so deep that it probably struck a nerve as she began shuddering, and then he drew the blade across her throat.

Finally, she found her voice and she screamed, "Mommy!" Blood spurted out, hitting me. I watched in silent horror as she writhed on the ground in pain before her movements before they became lethargic and spasmodic. Her eyes glazed over.

"Welcome to insanity little miss," something breathed in my ear.

I fell to my knees beside the girl, screaming loudly. Tears streamed down my bloodstained face in uninterrupted lines.

…..

"Mai, Mr. Kuri! We were just getting ready to go out and find you!" Monk shouted as the door swung open.

Naru glanced up, spying my pale, tear/bloodstained face before jumping to his feet. "Mai, what happened? Are you alright?" he asked concernedly, wrapping his arms around me.

I shook my head stubbornly, burying my face in his shirt. Soon, a new wave of tears over-took me.

"What happened?" Naru snapped at Kuri, glaring at him over my head.

"I don't. She was talking about some children or something and then suddenly she went stone still. Then she just started screaming and crying and was covered in blood. I don't know where it came from!" Kuri stammered out, looking frazzled, "I know about her dreams and how badly they affect her, but she was awake so I have no idea what happened!"

Naru nodded after a moment's thought. "Did you see something?" he asked me quietly.

I nodded.

"Miss Hara, Miss Matsuzaki, go on a walk through the house. Mr. Kuri, please go with them. Monk, John, go around and check to make sure all the cameras are where they're supposed to be. Yasu, November, get started on the research," he ordered, guiding me to a couch. He was just trying to get everyone out of base.

"Righto mon capitan!" Yasu cried in a French accent, saluting Naru before marching off with November in tow. Ayako, Masako and Monk all shrugged, making one last face at their children and giving me one last worried look before filing out the door with everyone else.

It was quiet for a little while. I was drifting off to sleep when Naru broke the silence. "I think her power is growing," he said to Lin, moving my hair out of my face and stroking my hair.

"I think you're right. That's quite worrisome," Lin affirmed.

**So there you have it. Hope you liked chapter 40. Tomorrow, the 19****th****, is my birthday! I'm turning fifteen! I just wanted to post this for you as my birthday gift :D**


	41. Chapter 41: Something Missing?

**Okay, so if some things that Mai say seem weird, it's because I watched Insidious the other day. It scared the shit out of me. It was good though. I recommend this movie to anyone who can stand super scary movies and love horror flicks like I do :D**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ghost Hunt, but I now own my fear of astral projection. Watch the movie if you wanna know why.**

Chapter 41: Something Missing?

Mai's POV:

_I was walking through the children's wing of the hospital. It was pitch black except for the occasional light of the full moon filtering through dirty, large paned windows. I walked cautiously through the halls, glancing in windows of rooms as I passed by._

_A hand landed on my shoulder and I screamed silently. I swung around to be met with a solid, black clothed chest. Sinewy arms wrapped around my small frame. It was Gene. Thank god it wasn't those psycho doctors. I might have peed myself if it had been them._

_I let out a sigh and smile up at him. He grinned sadly back, stroking my hair. "I have something to show you. Will you be able to handle it if it's horrible?" he asked._

_My face contorted with the thought, then I nodded. I had to be able to if I wanted to help these children and other assorted wacked out ghosts._

_Gene knew that and his smile saddened even more. "Alright, then come down this way."_

_He led me down the corridor. We turned the corner and suddenly flickering amber light spilled across the floor from a slightly ajar door. He took my hand, guiding me to the door and allowing me to look in._

_Another girl tip-toed up next to me and looked around the lip of the door. She had long black hair and shining, curious grey eyes. She looked like a younger version of the girl from this afternoon, or maybe now it was last afternoon._

_In the room, a much older looking version of the little girl, except with green eyes, lay on a cot with wide eyes. She was strapped down to the gurney like some soon-to-be-dead mental patient, but the look in her eyes told me that she was definitely not crazy._

"_Don't worry honey," a doctor said, coming into view, "This won't hurt a lot and then you'll be all better."_

_The woman's eyes widened even more as she spied the little girl. She was pleading silently with her to leave, not to watch, but the girl didn't realize the meaning. I hoped it wasn't as horrible as it seemed it was going to be._

_The man stuck a needle into the woman's arm. She shuddered violently, her teeth clenching together in an effort not to scream, but she couldn't hold it back for long. Her jaw snapped open and a long, anguished scream echoed around the room._

"_Shut up. Stop screaming," the man growled, clenching the needle tightly, "Shut up. Shut up. Shut up!" He picked up the scalpel from a side table and plunged it into the woman repeatedly._

_Gradually, she became still, even her labored breathing stilled._

"_Another failure," the man sighed, wiping blood off of his face and then brushing hair out of the woman's face._

"_Mommy?" the girl asked tentatively, pushing the door open wider. We were both spattered in blood, her mother's blood._

_The man whipped around. "Sakura, get out of here, now! Leave! Go back to your room!" he yelled._

"_Mommy," the girl said, walking further into the room, stopping only when she was standing in the middle of her mother's blood. She looked around her with wide grey eyes before she touched her face, it coming away with blood. "Mommy. Mommy!"_

…..

The sunlight from the morning sun streamed through the curtain, splashing across my face and turning my eyelids red. Slowly, I opened my eyes to let the tears flow uninterrupted.

I sat up, looking around through the haze of tears. Beside me, Naru still slept soundly, unaware to the dream I had just had. We were on a fold out bed in the base and I could feel my back cracking.

Getting up, I walked slowly over to the bathroom. The moment I closed and locked the bathroom door, the sudden urge to vomit overtook me. It didn't take long for Naru to be at the door. "Mai, are you alright?" Naru called.

I was washing out my mouth so it took me a little while before I could answer. "Just morning sickness," I tried to call after I had spit my mouth wash out, but no sound came out. I tried again, but still, silence greeted us.

"Mai?" Naru called worriedly from the other side of the door.

I jerked the door open, gesturing frantically at my throat. No sound came out, not even a little squeak.

"What's the matter? Does your throat hurt?" he asked, looking at me with confused eyes, touching the side of my neck.

Shaking my head violently, I gestured at my throat again. It was frustrating not being able to speak. I racked my hands through my hair, stamping my feet angrily like a little kid who didn't get what they want.

"Mai calm down. Just tell me what's the matter," he said soothingly, but it definitely wasn't working because I screamed and cursed at the floor silently.

I ran over to the monitor laden desk and started rifling through the drawers. When I had found what I was looking for, I scrawled what I needed too and shoved it in Naru's face with such force that he stumbled back a step.

"'I can't talk, my voice is gone.' How did you lose your voice?" Naru said allowed, glaring angrily at me.

I snatched the paper back and wrote. "Don't glare at me with that tone of voice!"

"Mai, you make no sense. Eyes don't have voices," he told me, looking over my shoulder.

"Yes they do!" I wrote furiously before continuing, "Anyway, I don't know what happened. I couldn't talk in my dream either. I think it might have been the vision!"

"Ah, dammit! Now we have no way of knowing what that dream was about!" Naru growled in annoyance. He must be really really pissed if he was cursing.

"Woah, what's up Naru-chan? It's way too early to be slinging cuss words around," Monk said, yawning as he walked through the door. Mizuki smiled at me from his seat in his father's arms. He reached towards me, arms outstretched.

I completely forgot about my lack of voice and took Mizuki from Monk. He tapped my face with an open hand, grabbing my nose. He giggled as I blew against his cheek, making funny noises.

I bounced him, walking around the base. Naru didn't answer Monk as they folded our bed back into the couch. The springs groaned in protest as they were forced to compress.

A shiver ran up my spine, straightening it in one go. Goose bumps travelled up and down my arms and legs. Mizuki stopped giggling. I turned around, glancing around base only to see Monk and Naru, and then out the window, down at the grounds.

The children stood down there in a huge group looking up at me. "Mommy," I heard them all whisper even from this far away.

I stood stalk still, staring down at them with wide eyes. That's when Mizuki decided to start wailing loudly in my ear. The children turned their attention to him, scowling at him with ill-concealed hatred.

I stumbled back from the glass, landing on the couch. Mizuki was still crying hysterically, gripping my T-shirt in his tiny fists. I bounced him, shaking violently as I did so though.

"What's the matter with my little man?" Monk crooned, picking him out of my arms and bouncing him.

I pointed at the window, my finger shaking.

Naru strode over to the window, looking down at the grounds. "Mai, there's no one there."

I looked at him confusedly, nodding my head vigorously before pointing at Mizuki. "He saw them too," I wrote down on the paper.

"How?" Naru asked, walking over to me in his usual thinking pose.

"He's still a baby. Their vision isn't obstructed like adult's vision. He saw them Naru," I wrote.

"Then why is he freaking out? If his vision isn't obstructed then he should see them all the time," he reasoned, not buying it. Stubborn idiot scientist.

"Instincts," I simply wrote, looking at Mizuki sadly as he was still wailing.

**I am so sorry that this chappy was a day late. I'll try to get the next chapter up within 3 days to reward you guys for your patients.**


	42. Chapter 42: Unending Darkness?

**Okay, so things in **_**'**_apostrophes_**' **_**are Mai writing and things in **bold **are** **thoughts. It'll get easier to tell by the next chapter. Enjoy this chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ghost Hunt, but I do own Kuri and John's friend :D**

Chapter 42: Unending Darkness?

Mai's POV:

"Two days and still nothing has happened since Mai's vision and dream," Ayako groaned, draped over a chair like a discarded rag doll.

"Don't say that," Masako chided, Naru continuing for her.

"We don't need anyone getting hurt with this blizzard," he said from his seat at the monitors. Ayako glared at the two and I left silently.

Ayako looked at me, her face falling guiltily. "Sorry, I won't say it again."

I scowled at Naru, slapping him upside the head with the file in my hand.

"Ow! What was that for?" he cried, glaring at me as he rubbed the back of his head. I grinned at him, whistling as I walked away.

'Don't be mean to the team or I'll have Masako and November sleep with me tonight and you'll have to sleep somewhere else,' I threatened. I grinned evilly as his face fell. "I'm sure Yasu would more then welcome you into his bed.'

"Yes I would," Yasu said with a grin from behind Naru. He didn't falter when Naru turned an icy glare on the other man. _Don't encourage her_, the glare seemed to say. That was totally lost on Yasu though.

"Or me. I'll gladly welcome you," Kuri said from across the room, "I haven't had something as hot as you in my bed since that Australian hunk. Remember him, Mai? I'm sure you do." He grinned flirtatiously at me.

John choked on his tea from across the room. We all looked at him surprised. He excused himself with an apologetic smile, going to go change into a different shirt. Wonder what was wrong with him.

It was silent for a moment before I grinned, nodding like a little kid asked if they wanted candy. Then I fanned myself and made fainting actions to show how hot he'd actually been. Naru frowned at this, making me giggle. I hopped back over to him, bending down to peck him on the cheek.

"Aw, hubby gets jealous easily. Good boy. Mai, you've caught yourself a good one," Kuri said, giving me thumbs up and a cheesy grin which Yasu mimicked, making everyone except for Lin and Naru burst into laughter. Even Mizuki and Makoto and Jamie started laughing.

Naru shook his head, turning back to the monitors as we all kept teasing each other.

…..

John's POV:

"That must have been who David was talking about when he returned from his trip. I thought he was talking about a woman!" John muttered, sighing in exhaustion. He was walking slowly through the darkened halls, his mind occupied by the problem at hand.

It was silent except for the slight '_tap tap_' of shoes on tile. "**It must be Mai or Monk. I have been gone for a long time**," John thought lazily, not registering the quiet screams and children crying.

He walked further down the hall. The tapping became louder and louder until it was thundering around him, but still, he saw nothing. The agonizing screams had escalated as well as the children crying for their mothers.

He swung around in a wide circle, searching for where it was coming from. Images in the window caught his eye. Slowly, hesitantly, he turned to face the glass.

On the other side, anguished faces of children, adults, teens and pre-teens alike stared in. "Help us! Help us!" the adults and teens screamed, splattered or drenched in gore of various forms and shades of red. The children and pre-teens on the other hand screeched, "Mother! Mother! We want our mommy! Give her to us!" Their eyes burned with hate and wanting.

"You know our mommy, have her! Give her to us!" they shrieked at poor John. The ex-priest was not equipped to deal with this kind of situation.

H stared, shocked, as several doctors in long white coats approached from behind the crowd. They all glanced over their shoulders at the snap of rubber gloves scattering like a flock of chased pigeons.

"Welcome to insanity, young priest. We welcome you with open arms," the head doctor said with a devilish smirk as John crumpled to the floor.

…..

Mai's POV:

"Hey, where's John? He's been gone for a long time," November asked, sitting on Yasu's lap.

I had a horrible feeling roiling in the pit of my stomach. Masako was pacing agitatedly, trying to calm a wailing Makoto. Mizuki was screaming his little head off as well, which only made me clutch at Naru's hand even harder.

"Maybe he got lost," Ayako suggested, trying to get Mizuiki to quiet down, "This place is huge. I'd expect it."

"John doesn't strike me as someone who would get lost," Kuri said.

Naru gave me a sidelong glance as my grip became utterly painful. He turned to Lin, "Do you remember where John was last seen?"

"Yes, a floor below," he said, pointing at one screen that showed a blank hallway.

I jumped up, not wanting for anybody else and made my way toward the corridor Lin had indicated. When we had stopped there, I looked around. Which way would he have gone?

On instinct, I turned right down a hall, jogging. My pace slowly but surely increased as my feeling got worse and worse. Halfway down the hall, we all skidded to a stop. "John!" Masako cried after a few moments of silence and ran to the man's side.

He was splayed out in the middle of the hallway. He looked unharmed. "He doesn't look like he's hurt," Yasu said, voice the thought swirling around my stomach, but maybe that was just the twins acting like sharks. They love to do that.

That bad feeling still hadn't ebbed though. I pointed back to base, wanting to get back as quickly as possible. Monk picked the smaller man up effortlessly, jogging back to base with the rest of us. We waited anxiously for him to wake up.

When his eyes started to flutter slightly, we all jumped to attention, crowed around him. He groaned slightly, rising up on his elbows. He stared around at us as if we were invisible or weren't there.

The first thing out of his mouth crushed all the smiles that had adorned our faces, freezing us in fear. "Why is it so dark? Am I still in the corridor?" he asked himself, looking around the base and us with milky blue eyes.

"J-John, the lights are on. You're not in the hall anymore. You're in the base," Masako stuttered, holding back tears that threatened to fall as she sat beside him.

"Masako, is that you? I don't understand what you're saying. Its pitch black in here," John said, confusion laced with slight understanding permeating his voice.

Masako's tears fell. She shuddered with contained sobs. John must have felt the shudders because he pulled her into a tight hug. "Tell me, why are you crying? It's okay, nothing has changed," John said soothingly, rubbing her back gently.

"Yes, yes something has changed," she sobbed, wiping at her tears with her long sleeved shirt.

"What?" he asked again, still stroking her back, though he tensed when Naru's voice rang through the base.

"You've gone blind," he said bluntly.

**Sapphire: *le gasp!* John's gone blind! Whatever shall we do?**

**John: Yeah, thanks a lot.**

**Sapphire: Daaaaamn. Sarcasm from John? Never expected that one. Sorry John, but I had to. It's a necessary component to the story. Just wait, you'll think you have it the best out of everyone.**

**Naru: *glares* What are you planning?**

**Sapphire: *giggle* You'll have to wait and find out. Sorry in advance though.**

**Naru: For what?**

**Sapphire: Noooothing. *walks away while whistling***

**Mai: That's…not a good sign. Anyway, review and by the way, Sapphire has been in a romantic mood lately so watch out.**

**Sapphire: Don't tell them that!**

**Mai: REVIEW! *runs away***


	43. Chapter 43: Horny, Insane, Humorless

**Remember what I said last chapter about the bold and the apostrophes, well there's more of it in this one. Bold is for thoughts, and apostrophes for Mai writing.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ghost Hunt.**

Chapter 43: Horny, Insane, Humorless

Mai's POV:

_I was walking down the hall of the hospital again except that this time no moon shone through the windows. That left it pitch black. I was as jumpy as a cat after being thrown in a bath of cold water._

_Gene waved at me from the end of the hall, waiting in the small bit of light from a candle. I ran over to him, grinning. I wrapped my arms around his waist, happy that someone was here with me. He grinned back albeit a bit sadly._

_I ran my arm through his. He smiled down at me, leading me down the hall. "Now, you're going to be so very surprised when you see this," he said, stepping up to a door and looking through the window._

_I gave him a questioning look, getting up on tip toes to look through the window. What I saw shocked me. I thought this had been a hospital for mental patients, but actually…_

_In the room, beds and personal items were floating. The patients here all crowded around the bed of the grey-eyed little girl, except she wasn't a little girl anymore. She looked about 12-years-old, a tween, a young woman. A pregnant one at that. "Sakura, that is so cool! You're so powerful!" some of them shouted._

_She grinned, nodding her head in thanks._

"_It's too bad you can't talk anymore. Your voice was so beautiful," an old man said from his bed with a smile, staring about a foot above her head. He was blind._

_The clock chimed six o'clock. Everything hit the floor at once and children came rushing in through the doors. "Mommy! Your baby is going to be born soon right?" The girl nodded with another smile._

_My eyes widened. I looked quickly between Gene and the scene in front of me. "__**They're not mental! They're psychic!**__" I shouted._

"_**All of them are, yes, but not all of them are sane,**__" he told me, but his mouth didn't move. He watched the girl with pitying eyes._

_I stopped for a second. "__**Why is she pregnant so young?**__"_

_The pity in his eyes turned to anger, hate, but not for the young pregnant woman playing with the children. "__**I'd rather not tell you. I'd also rather not have you watch, but that's out of my hands. For now, that is enough. Time to wake up.**__"_

…..

My eyes snapped open. I was laying on the pull out bed. Masako lay next to me curled up in a ball, John curled comfortingly around her. Naru was pressed against my back, his arms slung around my waist.

"**How in the hell did we all fit on here?**" I wondered, sitting up slowly. Naru's arms tightened slightly around my waist.

His face contorted with annoyance. "Mai…brat…stupid medium…" he grumbled, shifting and burying his face in my hip.

I giggled. Even after all these years, I couldn't believe that he called his brother a brat. It was priceless. Gene laughed his ass off when I told him about it. Then I laughed my ass off when he called Naru idiot scientist.

Trying not to wake the others, I got up and went to try to take a shower. "**What should I do now?**" I asked myself after exiting the shower.

It was only five thirty in the morning so only the most energetic people would be up. Mainly, the pregnant women (namely me or November) and the kids. Surprisingly, neither the babies nor Jamie nor Naru were up yet. I stepped over a snoring Monk and past the baby carriers, heading towards the door.

I heard the breath of two people hitch. Glancing back, I saw Naru push himself up onto his forearms, his head hanging, and Yasu stretched in the armchair, November curled into his side. They groaned simultaneously.

That made me laugh. They glanced at each other before Yasu chuckled.

"So Mai, where might you be disappearing to at this time?" he asked with a teasing grin, "Off to meet your ghost lover?"

"Sorry to tell you, but I've been here the entire time," Gene said, popping up beside me and causing the three of us to jump.

"**Jesus Gene, are you trying to give me a heart attack?**" I thought scathingly at him, glaring.

"No never. Just trying to surprise you," he said with a grin. He held up his hands in defense.

Naru raised his eyebrow. Yasu cut in before he could open his mouth though, "Oh, so this is the famous twin, Eugene Davis. Pleasure to meet you. Sooooo are you competing with Naru for something? You know those friendly brotherly competitions?" He was up and standing in front of us. Naru groaned.

"Yes, yes I am. I am competing with Noll for little Mai's love. Have been for years now," Gene said with a pleasant smile. It was anything but pleasant for me and Naru.

Yasu's glasses glinted as he adjusted them on the bridge of his nose. Not a good sign.

"By the way Noll, Mai was planning on taking a tour of the hospital. Just wanted to tell you that," Gene said, winking as he disappeared.

I glared at the spot he had vacated. Another glare was burning a hole in the side of my head. I turned, chuckling nervously and scratching the back of my head, to face Naru.

He sighed irritated, pushing himself off the bed and walking over to me. "I guess I have no choice. Let's go then," he said, taking my hand.

Yasu followed us out the door, reasoning, "I have to watch the children and make sure they don't do anything bad."

On the fifth floor we heard running footsteps. I freaked out, jumping behind Naru, before realizing it was actually Kuri. "Hey guys, can I come with you?"

I grinned, sighing in relief and nodded. We fell into silence again. It wasn't until we reached the top floor that Naru finally spoke. "Where are you wanting to look?" he asked, looking down at me.

I thought for a little bit before writing, 'The head doctors lab. I have a feeling about that place.'

Now it was Kuri's turn. "Oh! I know where that is!" he exclaimed, leading us down several halls. He stopped in front of an old wooden door, pulling it open. "This is where he performed his tests."

A girl with black hair and grey eyes watched us sadly from down the hall. "**Be careful please, miss**," I heard her say, but her lips didn't move. Then she was gone.

My brow furrowed in confusion, but the rustling of paper and opening of cabinets and drawers caught my attention. Naru was crouched in front of a large filing cabinet, pulling out file after file. Yasu was looking through the papers scattered across the table tops. Kuri was opening drawers and cabinets and looking inside.

Slowly, the temperature began to drop. I could see my breath in the air within minutes. I stumbled over to Naru, pulling on his sleeve. He looked up, watching my breath stream out my mouth in a thick mist.

His eyes widened and he jumped up. "Everyone out! Now!"

The door slammed shut. Naru swore under his breath. Cackling rang through the lab. "You're all mine now. What perfect specimens!" the voice of Sakura's father rang out, "Children shouldn't snoop. Now for your punishment."

Everything went black.

When I came to, I could hear hysterical laughter from beside me. I pushed myself up on my arms, observing the room.

The temperature had gone back to normal. Yasu and Kuri were stirring on the other side of the room. Next to me, Naru sat. His knees were pulled up to his chest, his arms wrapped tightly around them.

The hysterical laughter had been coming from him. He was rocking back and forth, half-crazed eyes and an insane smile curled his face.

I glanced worriedly at the others. I couldn't scream for help so I had to rely on them. "**Come on! Hurry up and wake up! I need help!**" I screamed at them.

Kuri jerked upright, startling me. I jumped, slamming against the cabinet doors. He looked around, spotting Yasu next to him. "Hey, little one, get up!" he said, shaking him. Well, he sounded normal.

"Don't call me something so stupid. My name is Osamu Yasuhara," he said tersely, sitting upright. I had never heard Yasu talk like that. Not even when he was pretending to be Naru or drunk, definitely not when he was drunk.

Kuri stared at him for a long moment before tackling Yasu to the ground. He straddled him, pinning his wrists above his head. "I suddenly want to screw someone. Come on, I'll be gentle," he purred, leaning over Yasu.

Yasu growled, "Get off of me. I have no need of this." I gaped at the two.

Something was definitely wrong. Yasu had never responded to such an obvious come on like that. He would have teased back, faking to be gay and Kuri, here was his self-control. Then there was Naru who was now screaming for French fries.

Jumping up, I ran over to Kuri and Yasu, shoving Kuri off of Yasu. "Thank you Mai. That was extremely unpleasant," Yasu said, cleaning his glasses on his shirt. When he adjusted them on his nose, they lacked their usual glint.

"Please. Just a little," Kuri purred, clinging to my leg. Kuri was gay, why was he trying to get into my pants?

"Stay away from my wife ass hole!" Naru screamed from the other side of the room between bursts of hysterical laughter, "French fries! I want French fries!"

Aw, screw my life. Not only was I mute and John blind, now Naru was insane, Yasu was humorless and Kuri has lost all self-control and sexual preferences. As if my life wasn't hard enough already…

**Mai: What the HELL?**

**Sapphire: I'm sorry *smiles behind my hand***

**Mai: *narrowed eyes* I fucking hate you.**

**Naru: *giggles***

**Mai: Honey, go back to your padded room. I have your special jacket that lets you hug yourself right here *ushers Naru out***

**Monk, Ayako, John, Masako and Madoka: *lmfao***

**Sapphire: *grins* Review and we'll see if we can get some more insane-Naru-ness in here.**


	44. Chapter 44: 3 out of 5 Taken, 2 Left

**Okay, so there's a comment that Mai makes about in here and honestly, that's just my personal opinion. They are all hot and you can't deny it XD I just couldn't resist adding it in there. Tell me in a review if you caught on to that message, it's quite obvious.**

**By the way, I've been wondering, how many of you are female or male? I wanna see that ratio of female to male readers. If you think that I'm over stepping my boundaries by asking this, please tell me and I will accordingly adjust my behavior :D**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ghost Hunt, but I do own Kuri, November and John's friend who might, just might, turn up soon ;)**

Chapter 44: 3 out of 5 Taken, 2 Left

Mai's POV:

"What happened?" Ayako shouted as Mai wheeled a now singing Naru in through the base door. Behind her, Kuri was trying to undo the top button of Yasu's jeans. November hissed at him, re-buttoning Yasu's pants.

"Ring around the rosey," Naru sung in an eerie child's voice.

"Seems like the ghost has gotten to them as well," Masako said slowly, keeping her distance from us and pulling John along with her. Honestly, I didn't blame her.

'We went to look around the hospital. We went up to the head doctor's lab and then the air got really cold. After that the door slammed shut and we all blacked out,' I told them, 'Do you happen to know where a couple strait jackets are?'

"Why?" Monk asked stupidly.

Yasu had taken a seat next to Lin, reviewing the stack of files Naru had collected and both of their notes on the case so far. Kuri was now attempting to seduce Ayako and failing miserably. Naru was still singing.

"And we all fall down!" Naru cried, throwing his hands into the air and letting his chair tip backwards.

I grabbed it before it could hit the floor and stared pointedly at Monk. "Never mind, I get it," he muttered, turning towards the door.

I tapped Lin on the shoulder. He looked around at me with a questioning glance. I pointed to Monk and he nodded, getting up from his seat. He followed Monk out, but I could faintly feel the presence of something still left in the room. It must have been one of his shiki.

Sighing, I turned to face my little band of misfits. Jamie had now joined Naru for a game of patty cake and singing nursery rhymes. Kuri was now trying to undress poor John. What can I say? Even if he's lost sexual preference he still has a thing for Australians like any sensible person. Masako was trying to prevent that. November was simply laughing her ass off and Yasu was typing on the computer.

It was an hour before Monk and Lin finally came back. They were each holding two strait jackets of all different colors. One was yellow. Another was pink. A third was plain white. The fourth was red.

"For a mental institute, they sure didn't have very many supplies. We had to look in all the rooms of three floors just to find these," he said, rolling his shoulders agitatedly.

I gasped and started waving my hands frantically. 'It's not a mental hospital! They were all psychic!' I wrote.

"Psychic?" Lin asked.

I nodded vigorously. 'I think the doctors knew that and were trying to suppress or completely eradicate those abilities!'

"Then why have you guys become like…**this**?" Ayako asked, gesturing to John, Kuri, Yasu, Naru and myself.

I shrugged and shook my head. 'I don't know yet. I think I'll try to dream, but first…' Snatching up one of the strait jackets, the sunshine yellow one, I went over to Kuri.

It didn't take much for me to force him into the jacket. He was a submissive and a masochist at times so it wasn't hard at all. Honestly, I think he rather enjoyed it which just really creeped me out.

I grimaced before picking up another of those special jackets that make you hug yourself, this time the hot pink one. Getting Naru into it was a bit more difficult than Kuri. …that must have been the understatement of my life.

"No!" he screamed, running down the hall with everyone except for Masako chasing after him, "I don't want to put it on!"

"**Oliver Davis, you will put this jacket on if it's the last thing I do!**" I screamed in my head at him. Oh how I wished that I could let my voice ring clear and overpower his.

"No I won't!" he shouted, answering me.

I nearly stopped dead in my tracks. Then I remembered that Naru had psychic abilities with telepathy as one of the much lower ranked ones. "**Yes you will!**" I screeched, speeding up. How I was able to even walk fast while five months pregnant with twins utterly baffled me, not to mention what other people thought.

Finally, after a long thirty minute chase, we cornered Naru at a dead end. He hissed at us like a feral cat as we descended upon him.

…..

Masako's POV:

"This place is utterly crazy. First Mai, then my sweet John. Now even Naru has been attacked and had something taken from him. What is going on here?" Masako muttered to herself, tickling Makoto. Jamie and Mizuki were dozing lightly next to them.

One of Lin's shiki swirled protectively above them and another hovered close to Jamie. Lin was really a great father, always looking out for Jamie. He had probably had a lot of practice with Naru.

At that thought Masako giggled quietly before realizing that her breath was coming out in little white clouds. Her eyes widened. Lin's shiki became more agitated. It circled them closely, brushing gently against Masako's hand. The one by Jamie seemed to envelop him like a blanket. Then, the one circling them was blasted away. It screeched in pain.

"Who are you?" Masako asked the air, her voice quivering.

A man with dirty blond hair and hollow grey eyes appeared in front of her. He tossed her a leering grin. "I am the head doctor of this facility and you miss, have just become my new test subject. You're not as good as that boy and other girl, but you will be better than that young priest," he said.

"I don't think so," Masako said, her voice stronger as she took a step back.

"Oh, I think you'll find that you can't resist," he growled. The room went black.

…..

Mai's POV:

"**That took forever. I hope nothing happened to Masako or the kids while we were gone,**" I fretted. After we had forced Naru into the strait jacket it had taken an extra ten minutes to get him into a wheel chair. Now we had to find a way to get back up two floors without using the elevators.

Lin, sensing my distress, tried to reassure me, "Don't worry Mai. I left two of my shiki with them."

"Yeah Mai, stop being such a worry wart! It's not good for the baby!" Monk chided, throwing an arm around my neck.

"Get off of my wife you pedophile! She's mine!" Naru yelled at Monk, struggling against the jacket and kicking his legs in frustration, "Mine, mine, mine!"

November bounce up beside me, throwing her arm around my shoulders now. "Come now Naru, sharing is caring," she said with a devilish grin. They were just lapping up Naru's melt down. How cruel!

Before anyone could say anything else, Lin gasped. "**Lin, what's the matter?**" I thought at him worriedly. Something flitted past me at high speed. Lin's shiki. Then, without even so much as explaining, Lin took off at a gallop, leaving the rest of us behind in his dust.

"Oh no," I whispered, taking off as fast as I could while still pushing Naru.

When we arrived, we found Masako passed out on the couch and Lin hugging Jamie tightly. "Daddy. Daddy! I can't breathe!" Jamie shouted playfully from his father's chest. Lin sighed in relief, loosening his hold on Jamie.

"Masako?" John asked tentatively.

Everyone jumped. We'd completely forgotten that John had gone blind. I took him by the hand, leading him to the couch. "**Right here John, she's passed out,**" I thought at him, trying to force my thoughts into his mind as I placed his shaking hand against her cheek.

He'd gone pale. "But she's not injured? Just passed out?" he asked.

"No, she's not injured," November said with a gentle pat on his shoulder.

He visibly relaxed. We settled into our usual routine, not realizing when Masako began to wake up. She blinked up at John slowly before looking around. "Huh?" she said louder than usual, her voice sounding strange.

"Masako?" everyone shouted, rushing over to her. We spewed questions at her without reprieve until she said, "What are you guys saying? I can't hear you."

We all went stalk still, our eyes wide, and then John began to cry.

**Sapphire: Dun dun duuuuuuuuuun!**

**Masako: What'd you have to go and make me deaf for?**

**Naru: And me insane?**

**Yasu: And me humorless?**

**Mai: And me mute?**

**Kuri: I'm not gonna ask, I'm rather enjoying mine.**

**Sapphire: *ignores Kuri* cause I can, but there is a point to it. All will be revealed next chapter. No need to fret my little ones. You'll be back to normal soon enough.**

**Lin: Good…**

**Mai: Review please. It motivates Sapphire to write faster and if you don't, she'll just make you and us wait that much longer for the next chapter. So please, for the sake of the team, review.**


	45. Chapter 45: A Long Dream?

**Here you have it, chapter 45. Oh my goodness, the end is soooooo near. I'm getting so sad. Anyway, hope you guys enjoy this chapter. I actually spent a lot of time on this. I have a lot more left to figure out though, wish me luck! :D By the way, this is a dream, but it's not in italics because I just thought it'd get annoying after awhile since this dream is sooooooo long, as the title suggests.  
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**Disclaimer: I do not own Ghost Hunt, but I do now own a new character, keep reading to find out who ;D**

Chapter 45: A Long Dream?

Mai's POV:

I groaned, sitting up. All around me, blackness crawled slowly, unperturbed by the gentle light I emitted. The astral plane was as dull and void as usual, except for maybe one ghost that haunted my dreams.

Tap, tap, tap.

The sound of footsteps reached my ears. That must have been Gene, but why it sounded like he was wearing no shoes baffled me. I turned towards him with a wide grin only to come face to face with the grey-eyed girl from before.

"**Oh, hello…Sakura right? Do you know where Gene is?**" I asked, giving her a kind smile, my lips not moving.

The skeleton of a smile turned up her lips as she looked up at me. "**I asked the onii-san if I could be the one to be here with you for this one**," she answered, "**He's with the lookalike onii-san**." Her lips stayed closed as well.

I sighed in relief. So he was with Naru. That was good, but he was probably there just so he could have a good laugh. What a jerk, but if I had a brother that was nuts I'd probably take advantage of the situation as well. "**Hey, you can hear me! Does that mean that your psychic ability was telepathy?**" I asked, my eyebrows creasing in confusion.

"**I was mainly a medium, like the onii-san, but I developed a small bit of telepathy after becoming mute. Being near you has amplified it. Everyone's powers have been amplified around you,**" she explained with a good natured smile.

"**Oh, I understand. Well, what have you come here to guide me through?**" I asked her, looking around for a scrap of scene.

Her smile fell. She didn't answer, instead she said, "**Please don't think badly of him. He was just…lonely and angry.**"

"**Of who?**" I asked, but the dream had already begun.

"Please Father, I swear it's nothing!" Sakura shouted. She was standing in an office. Muffled screams could be heard from behind a closed door.

"Yes it is Sakura! That boy is trying to steel you from me! Either stop speaking to him or I'll get rid of him myself!" the man, the head doctor, yelled. He slammed his hands down on the top of his desk as if to end the conversation.

The girl looked like she was on the verge of tears. "Father please, he's my friends," she pleaded quietly.

The man's face softened. He got up, coming around his desk. "You look exactly like your mother. So beautiful," he said, tenderly stroking her cheek. Leaning in, he whispered, "Get rid of him or you'll both pay the consequences."

Sakura jerked back, tears finally spilling over. She bolted from the room, rushing back down the corridor. She burst into the ward I had seen her in, in an earlier dream, throwing herself into the arms of a fifteen year old boy.

He was handsome with light brown hair and kind eyes that were chocolate brown. Why did that combination seem so familiar? "What's the matter? What happened?" he asked her, stroking her hair gently.

She didn't answer, but continued sobbing. The scene faded to black.

Another scene appeared as the first was disappearing. It was dark except for the dim light of the moon filtering through the window. The girl and the boy were cuddled together in a hospital bed, their arms wrapped around each other. There were no other beds in the room.

"I love you, Ayame," Sakura whispered, snuggling closer into the boy's chest.

"I love you too," he whispered, playing with a strand of hair, "Just know that I'll always love you if your father finds out."

"Don't say that! This is a happy time. We'll worry about the rest later," Sakura said, glaring up at the boy.

"No, you'll worry about it now," her father said as he slammed the door open. The couple jumped. Sakura held the sheets tight to her chest, her eyes wide with fear.

Two male nurses came to stand behind the doctor. When he nodded, they advanced. Grabbing the boy by his arms, they dragged him out of the room, not even bothering to stop for his clothing.

"Sakura!" the boy shouted as she screamed, "Ayame!"

The door slammed shut behind them leaving the doctor and Sakura alone in the room drowning in a tense silence. "How could you do this to me Wakako? I love you, but you go to that…boy, that infant! Why?" the man cried angrily.

"What are you talking about Father? I'm Sakura, not Mommy," Sakura said, her expression confused.

Her father shook his head violently. "No! Don't try to change the subject! If you don't love me then I'll just have to make you!" he declared, advancing on her.

She shrunk in against the pillows. "Father, what are you doing?" she asked as he tossed his lab coat aside and climbed onto the bed, pinning Sakura's hands above her head, "Father, what are you doing?"

I turned my head away from the scene, tears streaming down my face. Even though I could avert my gaze, I could not shut my ears to Sakura's strangled cries and pleads. Both only answered by her father's grunts.

"**I'm so sorry,**" I whispered, covering my eyes with my hands, "**I am so so sorry.**"

"**It's okay, it's not your fault,**" Sakura said, her voice shuddering as she watched the scene play out with tear filled eyes. Soon enough the scene had faded to black and another one took its place.

I flopped down on the ground, pulling my knees up to my chest to watch it. Sakura took a seat beside me.

I jumped as the first sound that attacked my ears was that of screaming. The screaming of a woman giving birth, but it wasn't the normal screaming. In the scene, nobody could hear it, but I could hear it echoing through my mind from the girl's silently screaming mouth. She gripped the hands of an older girl and one of the female nurses. Another female nurse sat in front of her, face set in concentration.

"You're doing great Sakura. I'm sure if Ayame were here he'd say the same thing. If he could see you right now, he'd be so very proud of you," the older girl told her soothingly, stroking her hand.

Sakura was crying as she screamed again. The scene went on like this for what seemed like a couple hours before the crying of a baby filled the silent room. Sakura was tired and warn out, but her face lit up when she heard that cry. "Congratulations, it's a boy," the female nurse who had been delivering the baby told her, placing the little blue bundle carefully into her arms, "What are you going to name him?"

'Kaeomon Taniyama,' Sakura wrote on a piece of paper. The scene went black as she nuzzled her nose against the boy's cheek.

I was speechless. I stared into the void that had been left by the disappearance of the scene. "**I'm…he's…**" I stuttered, trying to wrap my brain around what this meant.

"**He's your half-brother. My father threw Ayame out into the dead of winter hoping that he would die. He found his way back to the city at the base of this mountain where he met your mother,**" Sakura told me, not looking at my stunned face.

"**But why didn't my father ever tell me that I had a brother?**" I asked, almost in hysterics.

"**He didn't know. He tried to get back here, but when he came back everyone was already dead, including myself,**" she told me, laying a gentle on my harm.

"**Is…is my brother…**," I swallowed thickly, trying to get the words out, "**Is my brother still alive?**"

Sakura's face lit up with a smile. "**Yes, very much alive. Once this case is over, I must request that you find him. The people who took care of him have died and he's alone, so please find him and give him a good home,**" she told me.

"**Yes, of course,**" I said determinedly, then the next scene was playing.

We were in the ward that Sakura was kept in again. All the patients were there including the children. The man stood there with a satisfied smile. Sakura sat in her bed, cradling Kaeomon. She glared daggers at her father.

"I have developed a new serum. It will be tested mainly on females since we believe that your diseases are passed from mother to child. We plan to start right away," he announced, nodding to a gaggle of nurses who stood behind me. They grimaced before entering the room. The man eyed Sakura hungrily. "We look forward to the results. Now the first one to be tested will be…Sakura and Kaeomon. Come forward."

Sakura jumped out of her bed. All the patients stood up, making a wall of flesh in front on her and my brother. The nurses watched them, not moving. They didn't want to do this either. The disgust showed clear on their faces.

"Get her!" the man commanded, but the nurses didn't move. The man ground his teeth. "Fine, we'll get her. Doctors." A team of men in white lab coats came in, snapping on rubber gloves.

"Run Sakura, run!" one of the female nurses screamed.

The patients scattered and Sakura ran through a side door. I followed her. She hid Kaeomon before running back off. Again, I followed her and only witnessed the first vision I had had in this place once again except that this time the voices of children rushed into my mind, "No, Mommy!"

The scene went black.

We sat in silence for a long moment. "**Why could you speak in several of the memories?**" I asked, trying to change the subject from her demise.

"**After meeting Ayame, I was able to overcome my muteness until that night…**" she trailed off, "**Unlike the others, my side effect came from trauma and not the serum.**"

I was quiet. "**I'm sorry, I didn't mean for you to relive it,**" I said guiltily.

"**As long as it helps you to help everyone pass on I'm fine. Please help them…and then find my son,**" she said with a gentle smile.

"**I will. I definitely will if it's the last thing I do,**" I declared, shooting up from my spot on the ground, my resolve renewed.

Sakura grinned up at me. "**You'll do many more things than just this. Thank you anyway, but for now I think it's time for you to wake up.**"

I rolled my eyes. "**You sound like Gene,**" I said, but obeyed anyway.

**Sapphire: And there you have it, a brand new chapter and a brand new character with some interesting developments. Who knew Mai was so connected with the cases?  
>Mai: I sure as hell didn't expect it…I have a brother. I can't wait to meet him!<br>Sapphire: In due time, in due time.  
>Mai: But we only have one… *muffled*<br>Sapphire: *hand over Mai's mouth* Ignore the delusional girl, she's crazy. *nervous laughter*  
>Yasu: Yeah, she's so crazy. You know she's right.<br>Sapphire: Ssh, the readers are still innocent.  
>Yasu: Whatever. This case has only one chapter left. I hope it's over soon. I am going crazy sitting with all these nuts day in and day out.<br>Sapphire: Stop complaining! Review please! Hope you liked the chapter and hope to see you next chapter for the conclusion of this crazy case! What do you think is going to happen to the team? Even I don't know :D**


	46. Chapter 46: Without a Hitch?

**So here's chapter 46, the last chapter for this case. Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ghost Hunt**

Chapter 46: Without a Hitch?

Mai's POV:

I woke up with a gasp, sitting up quickly on the pull out bed. My back ached from the springs pushing into my back. It was dark and I couldn't hear the snow storm anymore. It must have calmed to a gentle sprinkle while we were sleeping.

Beside me, John and Masako cuddled, sleeping soundly. Not on the bed, but still next to me was Naru snoozing quietly in his wheel chair. Once again, he was sleep talking, but it was not understandable.

The whole team had crashed around the room. Lin and Jamie were the only ones up, watching the monitors. I got up silently and walked over to them. "Did something happen, Mai?" Lin asked, not even turning to look at me.

'I know how to end this case and why all the spirits are here,' I wrote, sliding the paper next to his hand.

He read my note, looking up at me sharply. "How?" he asked. I knew he wasn't asking how I knew.

'Cleansings will work for most of them, but you'll have to exorcise the last one. He's extremely strong,' I told him, 'He's full of rage and loathing that has been brewing for twenty five years.'

Lin looked back at the sleeping team. "Wake up Takigawa and Ayako please. I want to get this done before the rest wake up," he told me, setting Jamie on the floor. Jamie ran over to the two, jumping on Ayako.

I nodded, walking over to the sleeping couple. I shook them gently. Monk woke up quickly, but Ayako stayed asleep. I shook her harder and got the same result. Next, Monk tried and once again, we got the same result.

He made a face. "Hey, old hag, this isn't funny. Come on, wake up," he said quietly, growing more urgent by the second.

I scrunched up my face, running into the bathroom. From under the counter, I grabbed the worst smelling chemical I could find. Unscrewing the top as I walked, I held it under her nose once I had reached them once again. I felt bad for what I was doing because the smell almost made me pass out, and I was holding it out at arm's length.

Ayako flung upright, rubbing her nose. "What the hell?" she cried angrily. Her eyes were watering as she looked at me. "What was that for? God, have you smelt that? It's horrible," she asked angrily.

I shrugged my shoulders, screwing the cap back on and putting it away.

Monk covered for me though. "We tried to wake you up, but you wouldn't so Mai got a little…creative," he explained.

"Creative my butt!" she whisper/cried. She was still rubbing her nose and becoming extremely confused. "Why can't I feel my arms or legs? Scratch that. Why can't I feel my whole body?"

We all looked at her confusedly. Monk grabbed her hand. "Can you feel me holding your hand?" he asked. She shook her head.

I pinched her back. "What did Mai just do to you?" Lin asked.

"Nothing," she told him.

"Honey, she pinched you," Monk corrected, his face going pale with fear.

"No, she didn't," Ayako countered, her voice growing angry once more.

"So she's lost her sense of touch," Lin sighed in frustration before looking at Monk, "Takigawa, do you have all of your senses?"

Monk thought about it for a second. "Now that you mention it, I couldn't smell that chemical that Mai used," he said.

Then November decided to join the party. "Hey, what are we talking about?" she asked groggily, rubbing her eyes with her knuckles.

'Do you still have your sense of taste?' I asked, looking at her intently.

She thought for a moment. At one point she struck a finger in her mouth, grimacing. "No," she said just above a whisper. Soon she'd have it back though as we were getting ready to start the cleansings.

"That accounts for all the adults except for you, Lin. Do you feel fine?" Ayako asked.

Lin nodded. "I have my shiki and I left one with each child as well. I suppose that's the reason we weren't affected," he explained before asking, "Ayako, can you use the trees around here to perform a cleansing?"

Ayako gave a small nod. "There are a lot of living trees around here."

"Then let's get to work," Lin said.

…..

Both the cleansing and the exorcism went off without a hitch. Even the doctors seemed more than happy to go. The head doctor even thanked us, saying that he'd never be able to hurt his daughter again. Now, that wasn't the funny part. That was when everyone woke up and realized that their senses had returned. The best, I must say, was Naru's.

We had conducted the cleansing and exorcism outside in the courtyard so we were just coming back when we heard the commotion in the room. Everyone was yelling. The babies and Jamie were laughing.

The first voice we could all make out was Naru's. He was pissed. "What the fuck? Where's Mai?" he yelled, "Why the fuck am I in a **pink **strait jacket?"

"Why the hell am I in a yellow one? And why am I all sticky?" Kuri yelled next.

"John!" we heard Masako shout just as John shouted, "Masako!"

Yasu seemed to be the only calm one. "Why am I wearing such plain clothes? Where's November?"

We rushed to the door as the shouting increased. The shouting ceased the moment we rushed through the door. The sight was almost comical. Naru slumped on the floor with only his legs still on the bed. Yasu looking down his shirt. Kuri wriggling uncomfortably on the floor like a worm. Jamie, Makoto and Mizuki clapping and giggling. The only normal people were John and Masako hugging over by the window.

Naru's voice was the one that cut through the calm. "What the **fuck **is going on here?" he growled, glaring up at us, "And get me off of this damn floor."

"Naru, it's not good to cuss so much, even when you are pissed," I said, smiling widely as I pushed him back up onto the bed before beginning to undo his strait jacket.

"Look who's talking. You just cursed," he muttered childishly, not realizing that my voice had been returned like the others had.

They all looked at me surprised. "You're voice is back!" they all cried happily.

I scratched the back of my head in embarrassment. "Yeah, I got it back after Sakura's father was cleansed…oh Sakura," my voice trailed off as I thought about everything I had learned from her. Suddenly, hot tears were streaming down face.

Naru jumped up. "Mai, what's the matter?" he asked urgently, holding my face between his hands.

"S-Sakura," I sobbed, covering my face with my hands.

"What? She's been cleansed. She's fine," Naru said soothingly, rubbing at my tears, "Why are you crying?"

"S-she was…she was…" I stuttered.

"She was?" he prompted.

"She was my step-mother. My father had a son with her twenty five years ago. Kaeomon Taniyama. He's still alive. I have a brother. I have a brother." My words became incomprehensible through her sobs. Naru just wrapped his arms around me, letting me cry.

**I am literally falling asleep on my keyboard right now so I am off to bed. Hope you liked this chapter. Please review, they give me confidence :D**


	47. Chapter 47: Finding a Long Lost Brother?

**I am uber sad and sorry to say that this will be the last case for Bloody Rose. I had so much fun reading your reviews and writing this story. I'm going to be sad when I can't look forward to your reviews and the next chapter. I'm going to try and start a new story soon after I'm done with this one. Anyway, enjoy chapter 47!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ghost Hunt and sadly, never will.**

Chapter 47: Finding a Long Lost Brother?

"This is boring," Mai whined, lounging on the couch, "The client is an hour late. I doubt he'll even be coming."

"We'll wait another thirty minutes before going," Naru said, flipping a page in his book, "You're an expectant mother of twins, go read a book on child rearing."

"I already have. I even real all those scary books about child abuse. It was horrible. Where's Monk and Yasu when you need them?" she sighed, sitting up and heading for the kitchen, "I'll make some tea. Can I finally have a piece of cake?"

"Fine, but only one. You don't get to start eating all those sweets for another two months," he said, closing his book softly and surveying the room. Yarn was being batted around by a bengal kitten who Mai had adopted recently, reasoning that, "The babies will have someone to play with when we aren't with them." Slung across her desk were knitted sweaters, socks and dresses. Little ones to fit babies. She had even handmade stuffed animals now lounging against her computer screen. Mai was really getting into the mothering mood.

The movement of the door caught Naru's eye. He turned to watch as it silently was pushed open and in stepped a twenty five year old man with dark chocolate brown hair and grey eyes. He bore an uncanny resemblance to Mai. "I'm very sorry that I am late," he apologized quickly, bowing in the same way Mai does.

Naru's eyebrows twitched up at the similarities he was slowly observing. "That is fine. Mai, the client is here," Naru called which got a short reply from her. He motioned toward the couch with his free hand.

The boys eyebrows shot up at the mention of Mai's name, but they soon they traveled back down. "Thank you for seeing me so late. We had an incident at the academy that required the whole staffs' undivided attention," the man said, taking the seat that Mai had been occupying just moments before.

"There's no problem. Now before explaining your situation, what is your name? My name is Kazuya Shibuya," Naru said, watching the man intensely, already having an idea to who the man might be.

"It's nice to meet you. My name is Kaeomon Taniyama," he said, giving Naru that smile that the whole SPR group knew at 'Mai's Grin'.

The crash of a tea set emanated through the office causing both Naru and Kaeomon to jump. They were stunned for a fraction of a second before jumping up. "Mai, are you alright?" Naru asked, hurrying over to her side, Kaeomon hot on his heels.

Mai's eyes were glued to the man behind Naru. "You're my half-brother," she said in a choked whisper.

…..

Mai's POV:

"What's wrong with Mai?" Monk whispered to Ayako, watching me as I made my slow progress toward base. I had my kitten clutched to my chest, stroking her head gently.

"She's been like that ever since she got to the office today. Do you think Naru did something?" Ayako commented, looking at Naru who was holding my hand tenderly.

John shook his head, taking the initiative and walking up beside me. "Mai, are you alright?" he asked, watching me worriedly.

I turned to him with a smile, "Yeah, just in shock still," I said quietly, leaning my head on Naru's shoulder.

"Are you sure? The rest of us are just worried. You look so sad and out of it and your eyes are red," he said.

"Not sad, just relieved," I told him. He looked at me worriedly one more time before going and relaying the new information to the others.

Our group fell into silence, walking towards the base still. Why did our base have to be so damn far away? Honestly, what the hell? Well, at least Kaeomon wasn't the one who picked the room. He was only a lowly student teacher.

I was so deep in thought that I didn't realize we had reached base until the principal spoke. "Thank you, but I would like you to resolve this issue as quickly as possible. The girls get restless when men are around," she said, bowing to Naru as we walked in.

"Alright, but if that's the case, then how can you have a male student teacher?" Naru pointed out setting down the box he had been carrying.

"I understand what you must be thinking, but believe me, they were very restless when we got Mr. Taniyama here. The same goes for the rest of our male staff who are few and far in between. The girls usually don't settle down until they've all become accustomed to the male's presence. Sometimes it takes up to a year before they become comfortable. They've just started to settle down around Mr. Taniyama, but he has an aura about him that makes becoming completely comfortable unlikely, like with your group," she explained, a kind smile on her face.

"Why did that sound like an insult?" I thought scathingly, scratching the underside of my kitty's chin.

Naru didn't bat an eye at the disguised insult. He just said, "Please send in the girls who have had an experience."

"As you wish Mr. Shibuya. They'll be here after classes are over. If you need anything else, please ask Mr. Taniyama for assistance," she said, nodding towards the door.

My head jerked up and a smile spread across my face. I followed the principal with my eyes, stopping on Kaeomon. He bowed to the principal as she left the room. My kitty jumped out of my arms and curled up on the sunlit window sill.

I waited until the door closed behind her before speaking. "Gosh, it is so weird to hear my old last name with a mister in front of it," I said with a bright smile.

"Don't I know it, but your last name is Shibuya, or was it Davis, now right? Where's your husband?" Kaeomon asked, leaning against the arm of the couch.

"Both," I said, jerking my thumb over my shoulder at Naru, "He's my boss, husband and baby-daddy."

"Naughty Mai. Fraternizing at work?" Kaeomon asked jokingly, ruffling my hair.

"Don't you know it," I answered with a playful, teasing smirk.

"Okay, so I don't understand. Why do you have two last names if you're married to Mr. Shibuya? Are you a polygamist?" he asked, pinching my cheeks and making me smile like a monkey. We burst into laughter along with the rest of the group.

"That's because Kazuya Shibuya is the name he uses when in Japan. In England, his real name is Oliver Davis," I said, rubbing at my cheeks.

Kaeomon's eyes widened in surprise. "Dude, I'm brother-in-law to the famous Oliver Davis? That's freakin' awesome!" he cried, grinning with my grin.

With a glare from the brother-in-law in question, we all scurried out of the base, heading towards the van to get more equipment. "He has a fierce glare now doesn't he?" Kaeomon commented cheerfully, leading the pack.

"At least you've only had to experience it once. I've been dealing with it for so long that I've lost count of how many times he's glared at me with those _beautiful blue eyes_," I said, resting my hands on my cheeks like a pricy little prep talking about her crush.

"Mai, you got that glare almost a hundred times a day for three years," Monk said jokingly, ruffling my hair like I was a child.

"Oh yeah, how long have you known Mr. Shibuya? It seems like you two are really close, even for a married couple. It seems like you guys have known each other for a lifetime," he said, his finger placed thoughtfully against his lips.

"Whoa! How did you know that?" November cried, bouncing up next to him.

"No particular reason, just this little voice in my chest," he told her before looking back at me, "So?"

"Well, we've known each other since we were super little, but I forgot about all that once he went back to England the first time around and then I met him six years before this year. The last three years were spent in England," I explained cheerfully, bouncing next to him. Don't even ask me how I'm able to do that while pregnant. I honestly don't know.

"Why would you forget all those memories?" he asked.

"Well, um…that is…" I stuttered, watching cement turn to gravel as we stepped toward the van.

"She forgot because your father died the year we left and her mother when she was in junior high. Both very connected to the memories concerning us," Gene said, appearing next to me in a flash and placing an arm around my shoulders.

The whole group except for me jumped ten feet into the air. I was used to these random appearances by now. They all stared at the new arrival with wide eyes. "Whoa! When did Mr. Shibuya get here?" Kaeomon shouted, pointing at the ghost.

He laughed, sticking out his hand. "Hey, my name's Eugene Davis, twin to Oliver Davis. Nice to meet you brother-in-law."

"This is so cool! I'm brother-in-law to a ghost too!" Kaeomon said, sticking out his hand and grabbing Gene's. His hand didn't slip through Gene's. No, he actually shook his hand. As far as I knew, I was the only one who could touch Gene. This was going to be an interesting last case.

**Sapphire: *sob***

**Mai: Holy crap, the last case! :o**

**Whole Group: NOOOOO!**

**Sapphire: I feel the same exact way!**

**Mai: But my past is so obscure still.**

**Sapphire: If the readers want it, then I'll write a story depicting Mai's past. It'll be like a prequel to this one, yeah know?**

**Mai: Please ask for it! By the way, Sapphire wanted to thank all of the reviewers who told her their gender. Out of…four there were no males. All were female. That's still a really low ratio.**

**Naru: I didn't even know you knew the word ratio *smug***

**Mai: Shut up!**

**Sapphire: Naru, be nice to your baby-mama or your children will turn out…odd. You don't want that now do you? *evil grin***

**Everyone: Review for the sake of Sapphire's sanity please!**


	48. Chapter 48: A Sapphire Rose?

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ghost Hunt**

**Have fun with this chapter! There's a lot of joking around! …sorta XD**

Chapter 48: A Sapphire Rose?

Mai's POV:

_I opened my eyes to a black void. Once again, I was in a dream. Sitting up, I picked myself up and waiting for my ghostly friend. Why do I always find myself on the 'floor' here? Honestly, but I guess it wasn't exactly a floor now was it._

"_Mai, nice to see you so soon after our last meeting," said the voice I had been expecting, accompanied by the person's arms, "My brother is so lucky to have you. It's not fair. I'm jealous."_

_I laughed. "Well, he got there before you. You're more of my brother then anything, sorry. Naru is just…Naru and I like it that way," I told him with a grin, "So what are we here to see this fine afternoon? It's not anything horrible is it?"_

_Gene shook his head. "No, but we have one more joining us tonight so we have to wait for him before beginning," he said, staring off into the inky darkness. It reminded me somewhat of the darkness in a sea abyss, not that I had ever been in one before._

_We waited for what felt like an hour before we could see someone else materialize on the floor. "This place again? What am I seeing tonight?" the man wondered idly, sitting up._

"_K-Kaeomon? What are you doing here?" I stuttered, making my way over to him._

"_I should be saying that to you! And why is Gene here?" he asked, pointing between Gene and me._

"_He's my guide," I explained. Behind me, Gene smiled widely and flashed him a peace sign. We all burst into laughter._

"_Go figure. My guide has recently disappeared. I haven't seen her in over a month," he said thoughtfully, staring up into the gloom._

"_Now children, I know you'd love to be figuring this out, but you've got a memory waiting for you," Gene interrupted, pointing towards a scene that was beginning to materialize._

"_Oh crap, yeah, okay," I said, swiveling around to watch what was happening._

_In the memory, a girl with chocolate brown hair sat calmly looking out the window. She was beautiful bathed in silvery moonlight. She wore a snow white night gown, her hands clasped tightly, patiently in her lap._

_Suddenly, a blonde-headed, green-eyed teenager stood in her window. He wore all black clothing that blended into the night. He smiled lovingly down at the girl, lowering himself with a rose held out. She smiled back up at him, bringing his face down so she could press their lips together._

_I swiftly slammed my hand over Kaeomon's eyes, blushing. "No, you can't watch, you're too young. Save the innocence!" I said dramatically, resting his movements to dislodge my hand. Kids grow up so fast. That thought made me giggle._

_When the little borderline pornographic scene had ended and the two were just staring at each other, I removed my hand. They stared at each other for a long time, not speaking or moving._

_Finally, as a grandfather clock far down the hall chimed midnight, the teenager stood slowly. Their hands slid down each other's arms, their fingers hooking together before the boy disappeared over the edge of the window. The girl sat there for a long moment with a sad smile gracing her lips before she sighed. With the blue rose clutched in her hand gently, she went to lie in her bed._

_Curious, I made my way over to the window. Was there a ledge for the boy to climb up on? I didn't find a ledge, but what I did find was a magnificent rose garden that stretched until the gate of the school. All of the flowers were the blue of the flower that the boy had given the girl. They were beautiful with that natural beauty that was so hard to find in our time anymore._

_With a sigh, Gene murmured, "Time to wake up."_

…..

Gentle light streamed through the curtained window, splashing across my face. I sat up slowly, my forehead crease in confusion. What did my dream mean? I was so confused. Trying not to wake Naru, I got up from the bed, disentangling his arms from around my waist. I padded over to the window, looking out through the curtains.

A flash drew my eye down until it landed on a blue rose sparkling with morning dew. I opened the window. A slight breeze played through our room, ruffling my hair and clothing. I picked up the rose gingerly looking around for who had left it. "What the hell?" I wondered aloud.

Suddenly, there was a girl screaming. Actually, screeching might be a better word for it. "No! He's mine! You can't have him! Stay away from him!"

She kept screaming and soon other girls in the dorm were also screaming. I moaned, dropping to my knees by the window with the rose still clutched in my hand and my hands pressed over my ears. Another pair of hands pressed over mine and I looked up to see Naru's pained face. I removed my hands and pressed them hard over his ears.

The sapphire rose that I still had in my hand slipped out. As if in slow motion, as if it was swimming through the girl's screams, it tumbled to the floor. The moment it hit the ground the screams ended.

Moments later, Monk rushed in. "Are you guys alright?" he asked frantically.

"Y-yes, I think so," I said, rubbing my forehead as a splitting migraine manifested itself, "Though I think I might have gone deaf."

"Not a funny joke after our last case Mai, not funny," he said seriously though I could see a grin trying not to show itself.

"Is everyone else alright? And the students?" Naru asked, helping me up and over to the bed.

"Yes, everyone is alright. Kaeomon is checking on the students right now. We're pretty confident that all the girls are fine," he answered, looking down the hallway as if someone was waving to him, "Wait, hold on…"

Another screeching scream filled the dorm, but this time we could tell where it was coming from. We all bolted from the room as the scream melted into sobs. "Anna! Anna, no! Please, you have to be okay!" the voice sobbed.

Masako, John, Ayako and Lin were already there when we skidded into the small room with Kaeomon. On the floor, a girl sobbed over her friend's bloodied form. They were all, except for the girl, trying to stop the bleeding and the rest of us also jumped in to help.

My hand slapped over my mouth. What had happened to this girl? She was bleeding so much and it seemed to not have a starting point. "It's getting worse. We have to get her to the hospital! Someone call an ambulance!" Kaeomon cried, his hands basically buried in the girl's stomach, his arms and hands coated in red. His clothes were lost.

"Already on his way," Lin said, joining back in with the group.

…..

"I need you to tell me everything that's happened here," Naru said. We were all seated in base, nursing cups of tea and watching Kaeomon intently. None of us had gotten time to wash up so everyone had dried blood on either their hands, arms, knees and legs.

I just wanted to scrub at my hands, to rub the flaking blood off of my hands. The feeling made me want to cringe, but I resisted the urge. "Papa, why is that brown stuff on your hands?" Jamie asked in his high voice before anybody could help.

"I was helping someone. Come on. Help me wash my hands?" Lin asked, setting down his tea cup and leaving the room with Jamie close behind him.

It was quiet. Then Naru stared pointedly at Kaeomon. He cleared his throat, beginning, "Ever since this school was established fifty years ago, girls with brown hair and eyes and a sweet personality will receive blue roses for a couple days before mysteriously disappearing. After a day or so, sometimes even just a night, they'll reappear." Everyone's eyes were all on me by the time he stopped.

"Then why have you called us in? The problem doesn't seem severe," Naru said, watching for his reaction closely. I knew he actually didn't believe his own words.

Kaeomon seemed nervous as he rung his shirt in his hands. "Well, that girl…who was sent to the hospital? She was abducted yesterday. You see, when the students reappear they've been having worse and worse injuries. We're afraid he next girl will die."

We fell into silence once again. Soon, I decided it was time to break it. "Hey, Kaeomon was this school ever co-ed?"

Everyone looked at me with eyes that said, 'Where the fuck did that come from?'

"No," Kaeomon answered, as puzzled as everyone else was.

"Alright, then do you have a rose garden on campus?" I asked next, not answering their unspoken question as my mind flashed back to my dream.

"Yes, it's what our crest is based on. It's huge," he answered proudly.

"Then let's go look at some roses," I said, getting up and making my way to the door.

**Sapphire: Hope you enjoyed this chapter.**

**Mai: *scrubbing at hands* Well I didn't.**

**Sapphire: Too bad. Now, I have a question for y'all. Was what the girl screaming meant for our lovely little Mai or the almost dead girl?**

**Mai: Nice turn of phrase… *mutter***

**Naru: I think she gave an apt description of you.**

**Mai: I'm hardly little anymore. I look like a blimp!**

**Naru: I think you look lovely.**

**Sapphire: Okay! On to other things! *shoves Mai and Naru into another room* Again, I thank those who felt comfortable enough to tell me their genders and once again we only have females. Are there even any boys on this sight? I wonder…**

**Madoka and Jamie: Review and you'll see more of us and Mai's editor!**


	49. Chapter 49: Murder in a Rose Garden?

**Okay, so for those of you who are red-heads, please don't take what I'm calling the girl offensively. I swear, I don't mean it like that. I just didn't have anything else to call her 'cause Ayako actually has red hair, it just seems weird. Okay, so if my chapters start to be posted sooner and sooner, it's just because I'm anxious 'cause it'll be ending soon *sobs* But I'll definitely have another fic up soon after this one it done. The one about Mai's past will only be maybe 7-10 chappies long. The regular length of one case. I hope you enjoy it when I put it up. Enjoy this chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ghost Hunt**

Chapter 49: Murder in a Rose Garden?

Mai's POV:

Naru and I walked slowly at the front of the group, our hands intertwining with my other hand rubbing my swollen stomach. Behind up, everyone walked in groups of three and four. Even my kitty had joined us for a stroll in the rose garden, walking so close that she brushed my ankle. We were all taken by the beauty of the garden, completely forgetting that we had actually come out here to investigate.

Before going out, we had all taken the time to clean up so we were all damp and squeaky clean. Deeper and deeper we traveled into the maze of hedges. When we were at the center, I jerked to a stop. In front of me figures darted and blurred around the edges.

"No! He's mine!" a new girl, a ginger, screamed at the girl from my dream.

"No, he's mine. We love each other and you can't do anything about it!" the brown-haired beauty cried angrily.

"No! He's mine!" the ginger screeched, pulling out a serrated knife from god knows where. She slashed angrily at the other girl, cutting her chest and then jugular. She didn't stop in her attack until the girl was motionless, her blood soaking her clothes, the ground and staining the roses red.

The ginger grinned triumphantly, making her way through the maze. I followed after her quickly, ignoring the protests that followed me. Naru was right behind me.

She ran through the maze as if she was very late for a very important date. Where was she going? I soon found out and wished I hadn't. I gagged as I rounded a corner and found her cuddled against the corpse of the handsome blonde.

"Now we can be together forever," she whispered, pressing her lips to the corpse's pale bloodless lips.

He was in the same condition as the girl in the middle of the maze. His blood stained the blue roses and soaked into the ground under him. His clothes were too black to even see his blood on them. I watched in horror as she did things to the poor innocent corpse that I would never have even dreamed of ever initiating. What was wrong with this girl?

I gagged again, running towards the bushes to empty my stomach. The team watched me with wide eyes. They had no idea what was going on with me. It was even odder when I turned back to where the corpse and girl had just been lying only to find a patch of oddly reddish grass.

I pointed at the grass, looking between it and Naru. He caught on quickly, bending down to examine the patch of grass. His face showed utter confusion.

He followed something invisible to my eyes up until he stopped at the roses. "Were these roses originally this red color?" he asked Kaeomon suddenly.

"For as long as I've known," he answered, nodding, "Though there is a legend on campus that says that when the school was in its infancy the gardens were filled with sapphire blue roses. Apparently the roses that the girls receive are the exact same ones that filled this garden long ago."

"Do you think the flower that you received this morning was one of those roses?" Naru asked, turning to me in his thinking pose. His hand clutched at his chin, his elbow caught by his other hand.

Wow, haven't seen that pose in a while. He must be really worried. "Yes, I had a dream also…and just now…" I trailed off as I recalled those images and refused the urge to vomit again.

Naru watched carefully. He sighed and took my hand. "Come on, let's go back to base and then you can tell us about this dream and vision," he said, leading us back to the dorms of the school.

…..

We all sat around base. It was quiet and reserved except for the giggling of the babies and Jamie as they played with my kitten. Or maybe it was more that my kitten was playing with them. She batted playfully at their faces and hands, taking care not to let her claws out. She was such a good kitty cat.

It had been several days now. All that had happened thus far was my receiving a blue flower on the sill of my window every morning, my dream and the vision. Even Gene had looked appearing which was odd. Usually he would have been all over the grounds six times and reported back by now.

It wasn't like those times when he had been blocked by the spirits. No, this was more like he was taking care to avoid me, like he was trying to distance himself from me. What was wrong with him? Was he going through male ghost menopause?

I yawned widely as the clock sung eleven at night. My eyelids were starting to droop. No, I had to stay awake. I wanted to know how those roses kept appearing. I slapped my hands to my cheeks. When I opened my eyes, I was in that black void again.

_I sighed, standing and looking around._

_Almost immediately, a scene materialized in front of me. It flickered and was grainy like one of those old silent black and white movies that were so much fun to watch. Especially when watching them with Naru. You wouldn't know it by looking at him, but he had a great sense of humor and was a master at improvising._

_The film-like memory showed the ginger girl watching the brown-haired beauty walk through the garden. A jealous expression painted her face, making me imagine a sickly greenish-yellow color._

_As she watched, the boy came out of the far edge of the woods, entering the rose garden at a dash. The brown-haired girl perked up, going still before taking off in the direction of the handsome blonde. They hit each other at a run, their lips smashing together as the boy twirled the girl around in the air._

_The ginger's fist clenched in annoyance. "Get off of him. He's mine. Get off him. Get off him. Kill. Kill…" the ginger's words became incomprehensible as she mumbled and glared at the happy couple._

_The memory dispersed into tiny little lights, floating and swirling around me. They felt warm to the touch and I wondered what they were. Who knows? Maybe Gene would if he ever fucking showed up again._

"_What was that about?" I mumbled to myself when someone's voice, Yasu's, woke me._

"I've finally found some information. It took me a while, but here it is," he said, a notebook in hand.

**Mai: What's my kitty's name?**

**Sapphire: Hm, you'll find out next chappy.**

**Mai: Okay…do you know where this case is heading?**

**Sapphire: Course I do. I'm the author, I already know how I'm going to end it. Though you're going to hate my guts for the rest of our natural lives.**

**Mai: What…do you mean?**

**Sapphire: You'll have to wait until later :D**

**Mai: Um…**

**November and Yasu: Review for the sake of the cute babies and a very important team member's safety! Btw, did anyone get Sapphire's story reference? If you get it right then…she'll give you a virtual cookie :D**


	50. Chapter 50: An Instrument

**Alexkitkat gets a virtual cookie! *hands cookie* You're right, it was an Alice in Wonderland reference, but it was for the 'late for a very important date' comment. I didn't even realize the red roses thing XD I'm so so so very sad to say that the next chapter will be the end of this case. I know it was short, but it was one of those ones that just don't have much to it and get all figured out really early… Enjoy the chapter *sniffle***

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ghost Hunt *sobs in corner***

Chapter 50: An Instrument

Mai's POV:

I sat up quickly, focused on Yasu. They all startled at my sudden awakening. They watched me as if I had rabbis and they were waiting for me to strike. "Come on. What were you going to say?" I said, waving my hand to signal him to go on.

Yasu stared at me for a fraction of a second before gasping, "Oh yeah! Okay, so first off, this school wasn't always a school. It was a mansion. When the owner's daughter turned sixteen is was converted into this school. That year, the daughter and a faculty member were found murdered in that very rose garden." He jerked his thumb toward the window that overlooked the garden. "It was deemed a murder, but they never caught the perpetrator."

"She was a student at this school. She was a red head," I announced. All heads turned to me.

"You had another dream?" Lin asked.

"Yes and she was in my vision. She did it because she was jealous and was in love with the boy," I told them, looking through the papers that were scattered across the coffee table. I picked up a black and white photo, finding the people and showing them to Naru.

"Anyone would be jealous of them," November commented, looking over our shoulders, "She's beautiful, the brunette I mean." She was quiet for a moment. "She kind of looks like you." Her head tilted to the side contemplatively.

I gaped at her. "You must be nuts. She's so much prettier than I am. I could never compete with a girl like that," I contradicted.

"No, I think you are both very pretty. If her bust was a bit larger, had shorter hair and if you weren't preggo then you'd look like twins," November said matter-of-factly.

"She's right," Masako said quietly from behind me.

"Yeah, if her hair was shorter then she'd definitely look like your twin when you were sixteen. You look about the same height, same weight, same smile, same hair and eye color from what you tell us. Plus you're both pretty to boot," Ayako assessed next, leaning over my shoulder.

I was stunned. "You guys are mental! Right Naru?" I asked, looking to him for support. That was a stupid move to make.

"No, they're right Mai," he said, glancing between me and the photo.

"You guys are off your rockers," I said, leaning back and crossing my arms over my chest. What was wrong with me? Why couldn't I take a simple compliment? Maybe it was just my hormones…and maybe I was just making excuses.

Monk whistled as the rest of SPR crowded around to look at the picture. "No, they're right Mai," he said.

"She's like a carbon-copy of you. Or maybe it's the other way around," Yasu said, scanning over all the details in the picture, "She didn't have very good grades so that's also like you." What a joker.

Everyone broke into laughter. I glared up at Yasu. If looks could kill then Yasu would be just another ghost floating around the rose garden.

"Whatever," I grumbled, "What else did you find?"

"Okay, well, the fire crotch was later found hung not two days after the bodies of the daughter and the faculty member were found. It was deemed a suicide, but they never discovered why. All her suicide note said was 'now we can be together forever,'" Yasu read from his notebook, "The only other stuff I found was about the father and the school's founding and such."

"Did anyone else realize that Yasu called the red head a fire crotch?" John asked his eyebrows scrunched together in confusion. Monk, Kaeomon and Ayako spluttered with laughter.

Naru ignored them, back in his thinking pose. "We'll start exorcisms tomorrow, but first we should make sure that the only spirits are the three in the garden. Masako, do you sense any other spirits?"

She shook her head. "I can't feel anything passed the hate of the red head. She's more than a little pissed."

"Well then, Kaeomon, would you mind taking us around the school building?" Naru asked, looking up from the spot of carpet that had begun to burn. Little coils of smoke curled up from the spot.

"No, of course not! The students have today off so you can do as many exorcisms as you need or wish. Most of the girls _should _be in town, but there's no guarantee on that. They've gotten all flustered and been crowding this floor since you guys came. They should be in town though besides the music students who have a recital coming up," he babbled as we got up and left.

…..

"These girls are giving me the creeps," I murmured to Naru and Kaeomon as we walked through the school. All the girls either stopped and gawked at Naru or glared at me. It was a little disconcerting that even though I was standing right next to him, holding his hand and was very obviously pregnant girls still felt the need to glare and stare.

"Well they're annoying the fuck out of me," Naru growled under his breath. It was almost inaudible so I had to strain my ears to hear him.

We were quiet for a long time after that. Obviously, Naru was just wasting time. At least he knew he was doing a good job. There really wasn't much to do before an exorcism and there were no spirits to be exorcised.

We were now standing outside a practice room for the music students, listening to a chamber orchestra. It wasn't anything spooky –thank God!- it was something that made me think of the first snow fall. The violist particularly caught my attention. Her music was so full of life, so full of love.

I waited until the song was over to interrupt. I knocked softly, opening the door slowly. "Sorry to interrupt," I murmured with a smile, "I heard you playing and just couldn't resist. Are you guys practicing for a recital or just playing for fun?"

"Sorta both," said the cellist with a grin.

"That's awesome!" I said with a wide smile, "Who's the violist?" A girl raised her hand sheepishly, clutching her viola to her chest with her other arm. "Are you in love? I could tell by your playing."

The girl blushed crimson, nodding. She walked up to me with a picture held out. It was of her and a very familiar, annoying face. Stupid Natsume. I groaned inwardly, but grinned on the outside. "You guys look so sweet together," I told her, making her blush even harder.

"Th-thank you," she stuttered.

"You're welcome. Can I join you guys for whatever you were playing?" I asked, looking around at the group.

"You can play an instrument? But I thought you were a ghost hunter," the violinist said incredulously.

"I am, but my parents said that playing an instrument would help me in school so they forced me to learn how to play the piano and viola. I haven't played either for years now though, so I might be a bit rusty," I told them, sitting down on the bench and doing a G major scale, "Sitting here reminds me of Aya Narumi. You remember her don't you Naru? From our 3rd, first case?"

Naru nodded, off in his own little world of memories.

"Your playing reminds me of her's. She was so deeply in love, just like you," I told the violist who subsequently became extremely flustered. "Let's play."

I played off the violin's part, starting on the down stroke of her bow. Naru was brought back from his world, watching me with a smile that I hadn't seen since we were kinds on his face. Kaeomon was gawking at me like I was something else.

We ended on a C flat. The other girls were staring at me as well. "What?" I asked, confused and self-conscious.

"Rusty?" the bassist asked, "That was nowhere near rusty."

The violist cut in standing next to the piano. "Are you in love Mrs. Shibuya? Your music sounded…" the girl couldn't find the word to express her admiration properly.

"Beautiful," Naru supplied making the girl nod vigorously.

"Yeah, I have been since I was five-years-old," I told them, looking at Naru who was standing behind me and intertwining our fingers together.

The girls 'oooh-ed.' They were all blushing as they watched our exchange. "And you're what? Twenty? Fifteen years is a long time to love one person," the violinist said admiringly.

Naru and I responded in unison. "Yes it is, but every second is worth it."

**Sapphire: That's one hell of a glare you got there Naru.**

**Mai: You're not the one who had to endure it for years on end.**

**Sapphire: I'll take your place if you don't want it :D**

**Mai: Thanks, but I think I'll pass.**

**Sapphire: Alright then. Thank you everyone for staying with the story so far. It's coming to a close and in the next two to three chapters it will be over *sobs***

**Mai: *pats back* it'll be okay.**

**Sapphire: I always look forward to your guys' reviews and hope you keep reading my stories after this one. Thank you sooooo very much for all of your support.**


	51. Chapter 51: A Trip to the Hospital

**This is the last chapter of the last case *sobs* the next chapter or so will be the very last chapter for this story *bursts into tears* I had so much fun writing this story and knowing that you guys actually liked it. Thank you for staying with it all this time.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ghost Hunt**

Chapter 51: A Trip to the Hospital

Mai's POV:

"You know, I never noticed," I said, watching everyone quizzically with my head tilted sideways.

"Noticed what?" November asked, playing with the kitten. I'd finally decided after a long debate that her name would be Emilia.

"That everyone had their own distinct color except for you, Yasu, Mizuki, Makoto and Jamie," I said, "Lin is an orange-ish color. Ayako is an auburn color. John is this very, very, very light yellow color. Monk is this golden brown color. Gene always is a greenish color. Masako is kinda pinkish purple. Kaeomon is this light, light purple color which I imagine is what I have. Naru is a mixture of bright gold and deep navy blue. Such a pretty color." The last part I said lovingly with a sigh.

"You've had that since you were five-years-old," Naru told us nonchalantly, "I remember 'cause you told me and Gene the colors of everyone around us the first time we met."

"That's right," I said with a grin, "I remember that. You hated me back then. Masako too. Oh, she really hated me. It was worse than when we met that _first_ time in the school house." Naru was going to be the only one who caught my accent on the word 'first'.

"What?" everyone said, jumping on what I had said. I just grinned back at them.

"Not hate just disliked a lot. Gene took a liking to you instantaneously and your mother had a sharp tongue. Your father… I think he was trying to scare the two of us," Naru explained.

"Yeah, he was and then Mom loved pulling your guys' legs. Remember that time she told you two that we'd all been infected with a deadly chicken virus and started clucking? You guys were frantic," I laughed.

"Yes, I remember that day. She and Ayame were clucking all day long," Naru said darkly, "We never got her back for that one."

"No, you didn't. She said you guys would start playing tricks on me too if they weren't there to receive them and thinking about it, you've been doing that since we met at the school house six years ago haven't you?" I said, thinking about all the things we'd done over the years, "I guess you got your revenge."

"No, those were my tricks against you. This is my revenge," he said, beginning to tickle me. I screamed with laughter.

The whole team watched this in astonishment. Even though Naru was showing more emotion around them day by day they'd never seen him completely revert back this stage. To the way he probably had acted before being abandoned at seven-years-old. Mai always brought out the best in everyone.

The team smiled at the two's antics.

…..

"Whenever you're ready," Naru called to John. He stood in the middle of the middle of the rose garden maze. It was a big square with four benches lying around. The rest of us were standing against one of the hedges. I clutched a blue rose in my trembling hands.

John nodded turning his back to us he started his chant. For a few moments everything was quiet. Then suddenly the girl with brown hair appeared in front of John. He gasped in surprise and took an involuntary step back.

"Thank you for trying to help us, but may I go with Alex?" she asked, not looking at John or even Naru, but at me with imploring brown eyes.

"Oh course," I instantly said, "Do you know where he is in the garden?" I stepped forward.

Her eyes travelled down to my hands. "He's right there."

I looked down at my hands startled and loosened my hold on the stem. "Here then," I said, walking up next to John and holding out the rose.

"Thank you," she breathed, her eyes softening even more as she reached out. Before her fingers could curl around the rose there was a loud shriek from the other side of the square.

"No! He's mine!" it screamed.

Something blasted at us. It shoved the girl against the hedge and left my hand bleeding. The rose landed lightly on the ground. "Hirotomi!" the brown haired beauty growled, fighting against the force and sending out her own in angry tidal waves.

"Hana," the ginger said coolly from the other side of the square, "You can't have him. He's mine!" Her eyes went from composed to crazed in an instant.

John started us his chant again joined by Monk. Hirotomi snarled and screamed. Hana, released from her invisible bonds she dove for the rose. Almost instantly, the handsome blonde, Alex, burst out, embracing the girl. Then they were gone in a shower of warm golden light with a thank you. As if paint falling off of a slippery surface, the red slipped off the roses leaving them a glistening sapphire blue. So pretty.

I stopped with a smile and scooped up the forgotten rose, I figured John and Monk were handling Hirotomi. From behind me came a feral snarl, "He's mine!"

I turned just in time to see Naru jump in front of a flying blade headed right for me. "No!" Hirotomi and I screamed at the same time for much, much different reasons.

"Naru!"

…..

Naru's POV:

A rhythmic beeping assaulted my ears. It was steady and very extremely annoying. I breathed deeply for a bit noticing the pain that shot through my ribs, before opening my eyes slowly. I was met with sterile white walls. Beside me beeped a heart monitor and someone was clutching at my hand on the other side.

I turned my head to the side to see who it was. Mai was asleep in a chair with her head resting on her arms. She looked wan and pale and had tear streaks running down her cheeks. "Mai, Mai wake up," I said gently, shaking her shoulder lightly.

She stirred her breath hitching. She blinked tiredly up at him, not registering what she was seeing. It wasn't until she was rubbing sleep out of her eyes that she noticed I was awake. Her eyes widened and tears started streaming down her face. "Naru!" she gasped, her hand convulsing around mine.

"Ow, Mai that hurts," I told her teasingly, but she wasn't listening.

"You're awake. You're finally awake. Thank god," she was sobbing against the hand she still held.

"What's wrong? Why are you crying so much?" I asked her, cupping her face in my hands, "What are you talking about?"

"Y-you were asleep for a whole month. The doctors said you'd never wake up. I was so scared!" she cried, closing her eyes.

"A month? I've missed a month of your pregnancy?" I asked incredulously. One month. I've been wasting my time for one month.

Mai giggled, hiccupping a couple times before wiping away her remaining tears. "You missed a lot. You can feel and see the twins kick now. I haven't let anyone feel yet. I wanted you to be the first. I knew you'd wake up. The twins knew it too. They're excited," she told me, sitting up.

She took my hand and placed it on her stomach. I could feel two feet pushing at my hand. My smile widened. "They like to kick at anything on my stomach whether it's a hand or a plate or even a blanket. Anything they can knock over. We're going to have our hands full with these two," she said with a grin.

"Yeah, with you as their mother," I teased, watching her flare up.

She bristled. "Me as their mother? What about you as their father?" she cried.

"That just means they'll be extremely intelligent and good looking to boot," I said confidently.

"You're such a narcissist!" she shouted playfully.

"As my name suggest," I said.

The door was slammed open. "Naru!" the whole team cried, packing my room to the gills. They grinned widely at me and quickly settled into confortable chatter. Even I joined in for once.

**Sapphire: *crying in corner***

**Mai and November: Its okay, you can just write more stories.**

**Sapphire: It won't be the same *mutter***

**Mai: *pulls curtain closed around Sapphire* Alright, looks like our author isn't feeling good right now so we humbly ask that you leave a review with any questions or concerns that you might have and she will post as soon as she can. Thank you for reading and we home that you keep reading other stories. *bows deeply***


	52. Chapter 52: A Parting Dream

**Disclaimer: I do not and never will own Ghost Hunt**

Chapter 52: A Parting Dream, A Perfect Partner

Mai's POV:

I stepped through the thick inky darkness, moving slowly. No matter what speed I moved at, I knew I'd come upon something, or hopefully someone, sooner or later. It wasn't long before I heard his voice beside me. "Hi Mai," he said slowly. Why? What had happened to erase his perky personality? Was it the reason he had been avoiding me for the past three months?

"Hey Gene," I said in a cheery voice, turning to face him. I startled as I glimpsed the tears rolling down his cheeks before he engulfed me in a hug. "What's the matter? Why are you crying?"

He shuddered, a small sob escaping from those normally smiling lips. "I-I wish you wouldn't have to witness this," he said, swallowing thickly against the lump in his throat, "Just know that no matter what you see, know that I was happy the way I was. I was so happy to be able to help you and Noll. So please, when you wake up, tell him I love him and always will. That goes for you too, Mai. I love you, always have, and I hope to see you again someday. Goodbye. Tell the twins I say hi." That was more like him. At least he got one that Gene like comment in before e bent down, pressing his lips gently to mine and disappearing.

"Gene!" I screamed as I was shoved forcefully into a dream. I was both observing and experiencing what was happening.

I, no Gene, was walking along the road next to a lake. What was he doing out alone? I didn't have any time to contemplate as a car came rushing toward us.

It hit us hard at high speed. The pain was unbearable. What was going on? Someone was wrapping us in cloth, a blanket or sleeping bag maybe? It was a woman. She was lifting us up over the railing at the edge of the road.

"No, don't do that! He's to hurt to swim! He'll drown!" I shouted, but no sound left my throat. It was like I was mute again. I watched helplessly as Gene tumbled into the lake.

Icy water rushed in around us, stiffening our limbs as we struggled. We couldn't breathe. There was no oxygen to fill our lungs, only water to flood them.

It hurt, it hurt so much. The world was fading. "Noll, I'm sorry… I love you…" floated into my mind from Gene's as the darkness swallowed the last point of murky light.

I was sobbing, kneeling in the black void once more. Without warning, I was shoved into another memory, but this one wasn't Gene's. A younger Naru sat on his bed cross legged reading a book. It actually looked like a real book too, not one of those informational books that he always read in Japan before our marriage.

Suddenly, his eyes widened and he reached for a locket that looked identical to mine. Around his wrist hung another identical locket. Why did he have a second one? Unconsciously, I fingered the locket that hung around my neck.

I watched in horror as he rubbed it between his fingers and experienced what I'd just been through. "Gene," he whispered as tears slid silently down his handsome face.

Then we were at Gene's funeral that happened nearly four years ago. The casket lay closed as the priest spoke over it. Naru stared as it blankly, his hands stuffed into his pockets. Slowly, he approached it, taking something small and silver out of his pocket.

He placed one of the lockets on the casket. The one that had been on his wrist was now gone, with me. "Now you can finally rest," he whispered before taking his seat once more next to a sobbing Luella.

I was propelled through every memory I had of the three of us until I was gasping in agony in the dark void.

"Mai, wake up," I heard someone call, shaking me awake.

I sobbed as I opened my eyes to come face to face with Naru. I wailed, burying my face in his chest. "What' the matter?" he asked softly, stroking my hair.

"He's gone," I sobbed, clutching at his bare back, "He's gone for good this time! He was scared and so sad. He said that he loved you and me, and then he was gone! Naru!"

He wrapped his arms tightly around me, burying his face into my hair. "That's okay, he's in a better place now," I heard him stutter out and knew that he was holding back tears.

It took us a while to notice that the bed was soaked with warm fluid. We looked down. "Um, what?" I said and then a contraction hit me. I doubled over in pain, gasping. I clutched onto Naru's shoulder painfully.

"Mai, what's the matter?" he asked again, rubbing my back. My exhalations came out through my teeth in a hiss.

"W-water broke," I hissed.

Naru stared at me blankly. "What?"

Men are so stupid! "My water broke!" I shouted at him and then doubled over again, "Aw god dammit!"

Naru stared at me dumbly for a few moments before springing into action. He was nearly in hysterics, but was working efficiently. He had called Lin in a second and then helped me to the car. Several hours later, I was finally done giving birth and Naru's hand finally regained blood flow. The team hadn't come in to see us yet and the babies hadn't gone out.

Two nurses came over to Naru and me, holding out the babies. "Here you go darlings. They are so very cute," one told me with a wide grin.

"Yes, they are," Naru and I said in unison, both holding a baby. It wasn't long before we traded off.

"What would you like to name them?" the other nurse asked, holding a pen over two sheets of paper.

"The boy is going to be Eugene Davis," I said.

"And the girl is going to be Noriko Davis," Naru said.

The nurse quickly scrawled the names down. "Would you like your family in now?" she asked once she was done and with a nod from us she left the room.

Less than five minutes later the doors burst open and in streamed our whole family. The sight of the two babies in our arms stopped everyone except for November, Masako and Ayako. They rushed over to me, grinning wildly. "They are so cute," they crooned, leaning over them.

"Whoa! What the hell? Since when were you having twins?" Monk, Yasu and Madoka cried, rushing over to us.

"Since my fourth month of pregnancy," I said, grinning.

"And when were you planning on telling us?" Monk asked, flicking me in the forhead.

"Now," I said with a teasing grin.

Naru took Noriko over to Lin, letting him meet his new baby girl. She was going to be a daddy's girl no doubt. Lin knew that as he smiled at Naru, flashing me a knowing grin. I shrugged and smiled back. "By the way, I called your parents and they caught the first flight here that they could find," Lin told Naru suddenly.

He shrugged too caught up in his euphoria of having two new babies and a happy family. He could really care less that his mother was going to rip us a new one for not telling her that we were having twins.

We all fell into joking conversation, the nurses trying, and failing miserably, to herd the SPR team out and get them to quiet down. Nothing would work with how excited we all were to have two brand new members on the team.

…..

*_7 years later, Christmas_*

Mai's POV:

"Mai!" I heard someone yell from the other side of the door before I heard the banging, "Let us in darling! We've got presents for the monsters!" It was Ayako. She has always been so loud.

"We're here too!" November called. I wondered how much her eye was glowing today. After giving birth to Sapphira, November's right eye hand turned the iridescent pinkish-purple that Ciel's eye also glowed with. Her personality had also gone from mischievous to devilish.

"And us," came Masako's and John's voices together.

"And us!" Madoka cried.

"And don't forget about us!" Luella shouted.

I grinned to myself, shaking my head. "Noriko, Gene, go let them in would you please?" I called from the kitchen.

"Okay Mommy," they shouted, running to open the door.

Before our group could invade our home, Naru slid his arms around my waist. He kissed my cheek sweetly and grinned when I turned to kiss him on the lips. "Ew!" we heard a gaggle of children shout from the doorway.

The gaggle was comprised of children of different ages. Noriko, Gene and Sapphira –Yasu and November's girl- were seven-years-old. Makoto and Mizuki were eight. Jamie was already ten-years-old. Micah and Kaida –Naru's and my other set of twins- and Zane –Lin and Madoka's other boy- were all five-years-old. Kai –Ayako and Monk's other boy- and Sasha –Martin and Luella's new biological son- were both four-years-old.

All the adults crowded around the door to see what the kids were giggling at with bags hanging off their arms. "Get a room love birds!" Yasu said teasingly with a grin.

"No 'cause then Mai would end up pregnant again. They don't know how to use condoms," Monk joked and dodged a blow from Ayako's handbag, but we were all laughing hard.

"Oh, we know how to use them. If we didn't then we would have more children then we could handle," Naru said flirtatiously down at me, still hugging me close to his body.

"Little ears Noll! They're right here!" Luella cried exasperatedly, but the children weren't paying attention.

Noriko, Sapphira and Kaida were being fought over by the boys. This happened every time we all got together which was about…every day. "No, I'm going to marry Noriko!" Makoto shouted at Mizuki. They stood on either side of her.

"Sorry, but I'm going to marry Noriko," Jamie said matter-of-factly, pulling her into a hug that made her blush and giggle. Makoto and Mizuki deflated instantly. You can't beat the charm of both Lin and Madoka mixed into one, it just wasn't possible.

Gene and Micah were fighting over a very pleased Sapphira who was laughing at their antics. Micah was actually able to hold his own against Gene, but it looked like he was going to lose. Poor boy.

The younger boys, Zane and Kai were fighting over Kaida, but she was pretty decided, hugging Zane tightly. Sasha just stood back and watched everything. He reminded me a lot of Naru and Martin. Well, he was Martin's son after all.

Naru and Yasu loomed over the boys with dark looks distorting their faces. "Boys, if you want my daughter's hand in marriage then you'll have to go through me," they said together.

"Fathers, fathers please, no killing of the children today. It's Christmas," Monk said, "I think it's time to open presents."

The kids forgot their squabbles, screaming with excitement. They bolted into the living room, surrounding the tree. Paper flew and drinks were poured as we settled into our usual atmosphere. We stayed like that the whole day. Playing with new toys, playing with the kids, the adults playing our own games, teasing to an extreme extent and the news that Masako was once again pregnant. We didn't finish with our festivities until midnight. It had taken us an hour to clean up all the trash especially since we were all hammered, even John. It wasn't until one in the morning that our house was cleared out.

"Gene, Noriko, Micah, Kaida, time for bed," I called sleepily, walking into the four children's shared room, "Did you already brush your teeth?"

"Yes Mommy," the four called with bright smiled, helping each other get into their pajamas.

"Good job. Micah, Kaida, did you brush out your hair?" I asked next, running fingers through their long hair. Sure, Micah was a boy, but he had wanted to be like 'mommy' so who was I to stop him?

They nodded vigorously as the two sets of twins clambered into their respective beds. "Tell us a story Mommy!" they all shouted over they had settled in.

"Okay, which one do you want to hear?" I asked, grinning at their eagerness.

They all exchanged a look before shouting in unison, "The school house! When you met Daddy and everyone!"

I smiled at them. "Of course," I said, beginning my story. Once it had finished, Micah and Kaida were fast asleep, and Gene's and Noriko's eyelids were drooping considerably.

Naru came in then from where he had been standing in the doorway. "Good night," we said together, kissing the foreheads of all four kids before tiptoeing out.

"Come on, this way," Naru said grabbing my hand and pulling me into the living room were all the furniture was pushed against the walls. It was a glow with soft golden candle light. My favorite music played. Country and blues songs from America.

I suppressed a smile as he pulled me into the middle of the living room. He pulled me into a slow dance, spinning me now and then pulling me close. Soon though, the song was over to be replaced by a fast upbeat country song. I closed my eyes and let my feet carry me, my dress swirling around my knees.

At the end of several songs, Naru's arm found its way around my waist and leaned me into a dip. I giggled, opening my eyes and leaning up to his lips.

From the doorway, we heard the giggling of children. We straightened up, turning to face our four kids. The four leaned around the edge of the door, watching us curiously with smiles and giggling.

Naru and I looked at each other, grins splitting our faces. We turned back and I asked, "Do you want to dance with Mommy and Daddy?"

The four's faces lit up even more if that were possible as they scrambled forward. "Yeah!" they all shouted happily, slamming into our legs.

**Sapphire: *sniffle* T-that was t-the l-last chapter of Bloody Rose.**

**Everyone: We're sad too, but you're making a prequel right?**

**Sapphire: Sorta…it's about Mai's past and yes, goes along with this story. It's going to be titled "The Mystery Behind the Girl".**

**Mai: Then it's all right.**

**Sapphire: *crawls into corner and starts sobbing.**

**Mai: *throws blanket over crying girl* Well there you have it, the last chapter of this story. Our author wishes to thank all of you who stayed with this story until the very end and also those of you who reviewed. We ask that you humbly review and tell us how it was, we would greatly appreciate it. Again, thank you (:**


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